I’ve been meaning to write about skills for a long time now, as there’s either a wrong perception of that, or people just don’t think too much about it, don’t have a strategy and end up wasting their talent, hard work and future.
First, let’s make a few points clear:
• we all have the ability to excel at whatever we’re interested in;
• getting good at something is just a matter of daily commitment and focus;
• we concentrate on too many skills at once and want to be the best at everything. The result: we end up being mediocre, which makes our efforts meaningless;
• being okay at something means nothing, we’re all okay at many things;
• when a skill is mastered, the person has the chance to live a fulfilling life and make a lot of money doing what he enjoys;
• every single thing you do throughout your day affects your skills (or is the reason you lack any).
So let’s talk about each a bit more now.
We’re All Capable of Getting Good at Any Skill
Yes, that’s true.
Talent is a factor too, as are many other things – like having the money to afford equipment that will help you exceed, or knowing the right people, or already having other skills the combination of which will let you move forward faster.
These just make things a bit easier, but don’t change the fact that you need to go all the way and do all the hard work if you want to master a skill.
How can knowing that help you?
Well, if you’re really interested in something, think a seemingly impossible idea can work, or want to try something new really bad, but think you don’t have the talent, consider it too hard, or else – you should know that you can still do it.
So don’t give up, almost always it’s better to give it a try. If the passion lasts, then it’s worth investing even more time.
But the important thing is that you have inside of you all it takes to excel at that thing. And with the right mindset, dedication and after some time of hard work (often years), you can become so good that you’ll either make money from that, break records, teach others, turn it into your own business, or all of these.
Why Choose Between 1-3 Life Skills
We live in the era of distractions, and opportunities.
The former is bad, the latter is usually great, but in this case – just another distraction.
The thing is, we’ve got many desires, want to try everything, to have results fast, to then jump onto another adventure. And we end up having started many projects, set many goals and dreams, but never actually complete anything, or excel.
Which means that all the time spent on them is pointless. And although there are lessons and experience in everything we try, we’ve still lost time that could have been invested in a more profitable way and could have gotten us ahead of others in a certain niche.
No need for regrets, of course. But it’s a good thing to keep in mind, especially if you’re easily impressed and tend to change your mind and decisions often, and try many different stuff.
So what you need to do is be clear about what you want.
Experiment in the beginning, that’s great. After all, you don’t want to end up getting better at something you’ll soon hate.
So try things out for some time, but then decide what you really want, make a plan, have a vision, and set goals.
Up to 3 things like that are the right number, in my opinion.
Some people prove that we can achieve much more in life. But considering that you still want to enjoy your days, have fun, spend time on side projects, hobbies and with family, 3 is a good number and can still bring you unbelievable results.
Why We Need to Master The Skill We Choose
Again, being okay at something doesn’t matter. It means you’re average.
You may be able to cook, write, feel like dancing comes to you naturally, have an interest in astronomy and find it easy to code, but if you don’t decide to focus on one of these and keep the rest at their current level, you’ll just have a few things you’re okay at.
No results can really come out of that, no one would be impressed, you won’t make money, won’t grow and improve yourself.
And while you can still spend your free time doing all of these, imagine what will happen if you concentrate only on coding, for example. Imagine dedicating 3-4 hours daily, for a start. You’ll soon see progress, will know much more and opportunities will open to you. Ideas will be generated on how to improve even more, what projects to start, how to invest that, how to help others do the same, etc.
So that’s why a skill needs to be mastered.
Only then can you leave a mark in the world, can you be known for that, become a professional in a field, offer value, contribute and test your limits.
Also, only then will you unleash your hidden potential. Otherwise, you would never see the best you can be.
Everything you do affects your skills
Here’s a great picture that says it all:
Spend all your days reading and writing, and you’ll get good at it without doing anything else.
But spend them procrastinating, trying to figure out what to do first and to deal with writer’s block, and you won’t get any further.
***
These are the things that make skills so important.
It’s not about your resume, it’s not about bragging or landing that job, it’s about becoming the best version of yourself, doing what you love, leaving something behind and doing meaningful work.
And being a skilled player is always an advantage, in any game.
What about you? What are your skills?
What level are you at? And what are you doing to level up?
See also:
Life is a game. This is your strategy guide.
How to succeed when you have no special skills
10 skills you need to succeed at almost anything
How to become a progress fanatic
Leveling up in the game of life