“One of my greatest talents…”

“One of my greatest talents is recognizing talent in others and giving them the forum to shine.”

-Tory Burch, American fashion designer

QC #764
For my birthday this year, my son-in-law Chris gave me a wonderful book titled The Talent Code, by Daniel Coyle. Chris knows me pretty well and has a knack for finding the perfect gift. It seems only fitting, since we have given him our wonderful daughter Rachel!

Recognizing and developing talent is and will continue to be a critical factor in the business world. This is particularly so as the Baby Boom generation begins to exit from the workforce.

Coyle drew on cutting edge science and first-hand research gathered on his travels to “talent hotbeds.” He identified three key elements that allow us to more fully develop our gifts, and optimize our performance in just about any area of life. They are:

Deep Practice
Deep Practice combines experiential efforts of trial, error, and rapid correction, to increase skill development at rates up to ten times faster than conventional methods.

Ignition
Ignition is that special factor that fully captures the passions and commitments, and is the catalyst for an individual to start and stay with the efforts to master a particular skill.

Master Coaching
Master Coaching reveals some of the secrets and tools used by the world’s most effective teachers, trainers, and coaches to fuel and bring out the best in their students.

EXERCISE:

Purchase, read, or better yet – study – The Talent Code. Recognize and develop your talents, and those of others, so that we can all shine more brightly.

#103: “When love and skill work together, expect a masterpiece.”

– John Ruskin, artist and art critic

We have all heard the quote, “When you love what you do, you’ll never work a day in your life.” A by-product of this mixture of love and work is mastery, due to the amount of practice we experience over time.

Think about famous artists, top athletes, and great entertainers as examples of this synergistic combination.

Exercise:

What are your greatest skills, where you lose yourself in love?

It would be wonderful if these included your vocation. They may be hobbies or similar avocations – and hopefully, they can include building extraordinary relationships, in all areas of life.

What masterpieces have you built to this point and what future works of art are on the way?

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