"I don't have a gift..."
If something happened to my mouth, which meant I could never speak again, I would immediately turn to pen and paper, so I could motivate with my words. In fact, some of my greatest sources of encouragement have come from what I read, and not what was said, surprisingly.
Someone needs to hear this!
[An excerpt from my upcoming book on purpose…]
Because many of us have tied our gifts to activities, when we can't 'easily' perform popular activities like speaking publicly, playing sports, or playing an instrument, we automatically assume that we are not gifted.
Well, here’s a reminder…
The physical outlook of our gifts are heavily dependent on our environment, our exposure and the experience we are able to garner over time.
I speak publicly because for over 20 years, I have been in an environment where I personally observed my parents consistently, passionately and effectively, publicly communicate ideas as a large part of their vocation and career. That, as well as the fact that, my environments have provided me various opportunities to regularly speak (whether I wanted to or not); that public speaking is now a verified occupation, which has only really become the case in the last few decades, and that I’ve taken time to attend several courses over the years which have empowered me to motivate more effectively.
I could go on listing how different factors have played their part in the physical expressions of my different gifts, but we will be here for a very long time, so I won’t.
Through it all, one thing has become clear to me, and that is: my gifts are first intangible and immaterial at their core.
At the core of my public speaking (physical expression), I know that the real gift I posses is the gift of motivation! This could have manifested physically as a life coach, as a counsellor, as a comedian (because believe it or not, comedians also motivate and encourage), or even as an artist. The point remains. We need to…
Stop tying our gifts to physical activities!
If something happened to my mouth, which meant I could never speak again, I would immediately turn to pen and paper, so I could motivate with my words. In fact, some of my greatest sources of encouragement have come from what I read, and not what was said, surprisingly.
That said though, I definitely still prefer to motivate via spoken word, but you get my point!
So long as there is breath in you, there is at least one unique essence and virtue which you can channel positively, regardless of the cards life deals you. Everyone has a gift…We’ve just been looking at it wrong…
I played this over and over whilst I wrote the words you’ve just read. As you play it, allow your mind wander, whilst you meditate on the true nature of your gift(s). You are more than meets the eye!