It’s difficult enough to find out what you want to do with your life. It’s even more difficult when you’re pounding your head against a brick wall trying to figure out what you’re good at.
Take a deep breath and recognize that this is a question that everyone asks themselves at some point in their lives before giving themselves a conclusion.
Everyone wants to be good at the things they care about, yet many individuals have no idea what those things are.
Finding out what you’re naturally excellent at and what your talents are will help you figure out what you’re enthusiastic about.
You might even discover that your abilities can lead you along a career route that allows you to use them.
In this article, you will discover seven ways you can figure out what you’re good at.
Table of contents
Why Knowing Your Strengths is Important
Knowing your strengths might help you become more self-aware. It can give you a fresh perspective on qualities you previously overlooked.
People who know their strengths are more aware of what makes them special and how their personality affects others.
Most of us are mostly aware of our flaws, yet we find it difficult to recognize our natural abilities and talents.
Even more, many of us are inclined to think of a flaw when asked to think of anything we want to change about ourselves. This is not a strength.
However, research suggests that people who recognize and apply their abilities on a regular basis are more successful at work.
We grow more quickly when we concentrate on improving our strengths rather than striving to fix our weaknesses.
If you can focus on your strengths, you can encourage yourself, and here are the benefits you’ll enjoy:
Knowing what you’re good at encourages clarity and boosts self-confidence.
Knowing what you’re good at also places you in a position to use your strengths and as such, productivity soars.
Once you know what you’re good at, it increases your engagement and retention in everything you do.
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How Do You Answer “What Are You Good At?”
It is one thing to know that you should choose a career that includes your talents and strengths, but quite another to know just what it is you are good at.
Although some people’s strengths are clear, many others don’t know what they are good at and may even assume they aren’t good at anything.
Everyone, on the other hand, has their own set of skills and abilities. Talents are natural skills that you are born with, such as the ability to sing on key or quickly learn a language.
Your gifts become strengths as you practice and work on them. It is never too late to cultivate your talents, even if you haven’t done so yet.
So, if you’re faced with the question “what are you good at,” the answer will totally depend on who’s asking.
If this question is asked in a job interview and being asked about your strengths (what you’re strong at), pick the skills that best represent your best traits.
So, if you’re coming from the context of how to answer interview questions, here is a good answer based on this premise.
However, never use the word “Good” as an answer. It is such a broad concept that it loses its meaning since we all use it to mean different things.
Here’s how you could frame your response to the question to put yourself in a better light:
- My best contributions, I believe, are in the creation of innovative solutions….
- My previous team admired me the most for my ability to create a large support network…
- I find it simple to recognize patterns and devise an efficient strategy for….
- My primary strengths are in the execution domain. Thus I can get a lot done in a short amount of time.
With the above answer, you’re giving the interviewer a verbal image of how you add value to their company.
This is when knowing your abilities and talents and being able to confidently discuss them comes in handy.
It’s also crucial to understand your areas of weakness (Although I despise the term “weakness”).
That way, you can honestly state, “That isn’t a strong suit for me,” and because you know how to spot it in others, you’ll be able to locate collaborative partners to build a win-win situation.
The more we understand ourselves, our abilities, and our strengths, the easier it is to determine whether a position or role is a good fit for us or if we should pass.
7 Ways to Passionately Know How to Find What You Are Good At
Let’s have a look at how to figure out your strengths. It’s important to note that this isn’t something you’re bringing into yourself for the first time.
It’s always been inside you, but you’ve probably never given it any thought. Begin by watching reading the steps below for a quick overview of how to identify your skills.
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1. Check Your Personality
Your personality is most likely the best source of information. As a result, it’s a fantastic place to start.
Your personality is unique to you, although there are many personalities.
There is no single feature that makes up a person’s personality. There are always multiple characteristics.
Some will show up more prominently than others. It is the unique combination of these characteristics that distinguishes you.
Meanwhile, every personality has its own set of strengths and flaws. Because the goal is to figure out what you’re strong at, you should concentrate on your strengths.
Most importantly, your personality reflects who you are.
Hence, you can consider your personality qualities as the foundation for what you’re good at.
For instance, if establishing friends is one of your skills, you might be a natural communicator.
This opens the door to sales and marketing-related employment and entrepreneurship.
But if attention to detail is one of your skills, you could work as a researcher or data analyst.
It’s important to remember that strengths can also be flaws. For example, being able to quickly establish friends could lead to you talking more about yourself.
This could also indicate that you are a poor listener. As a result, it’s critical that you recognize these as strengths that could benefit from some trimming in order to achieve greater results.
2. Take a Test and Write Down Ideas
Consider taking an aptitude exam.
For instance, employers do benefit from aptitude testing during the employment process. They use them to assess the candidates’ innate abilities.
You can adopt that method as it can help you figure out what you’re good at.
It’s a good way to do it by not overthinking the options available. Simply choose what comes naturally to you. You will have the chance to grow as a person.
3. Look for Patterns
Once you’ve taken the test and have some ideas written down some of your skills, you’ll start to notice something: Some of the concepts are intertwined.
Sort them into categories that make sense to you. Perhaps you should categorize yours by “Skills I enjoy doing,” “Skills I am compensated the most for,” “Skills I want to develop,” or “Skills I haven’t used in a long time.”
Your strongest areas are likely to be the skills and hobbies that come up the most. Some of these skills may be connected; if so, consider professions where these abilities could be combined.
For example, if any of your friends claim you have a strong eye for detail, and you notice that you spend a lot of time organizing your room, you might be able to find rewarding work as an art curator.
4. Ask Questions
Inquiring into your inherent strengths is a terrific method to learn more about yourself.
Inquire of people you trust and respect about what they think you’re good at.
Speak with people who are familiar with you, people with whom you’ve worked, and former supervisors or professors.
Also, inquire about their perceptions of your skills, times when they’ve seen you succeed, and which jobs they believe might be a good fit for your personality and natural abilities.
It might be difficult to take a step back and analyze ourselves objectively; an outside perspective may help you see yourself in a new light.
You can also learn about your skills by taking online personality and job aptitude tests, as earlier mentioned above.
5. What Do People Compliment You For?
You’ve got a lot of accolades throughout your life. Take a closer look at these. It’s all about compliments on well-done work.
You may have done it successfully because of your resourcefulness or natural ability. Try to recall what the compliments were about.
What were the specific topics discussed by the individuals? Did they note how quickly you delivered? Is the information you presented accurate? What is the breadth of your knowledge?
These are indicators of areas where you can excel.
These compliments can assist you in recognizing that you have been receiving more work along specified lines. It’s possible that you were your boss’s go-to guy for reporting.
6. What Were Your Childhood Successes?
Your childhood has a lot more to say than the games that left you scarred. You tried practically everything during your childhood.
You succeeded well at some of the things you tried without giving them much thought. Those little things you did at that tender age can fully describe what you’re good at.
Just as every human being is born with particular abilities that are readily apparent, each day it’s as if those abilities yearn to be acknowledged and put to use.
Similarly, there are things you used to do as a kid that you no longer do. These might help steer you on the right path for what you’re good at.
You can even engage your parents because some of these things may be difficult to recall. You might check with your siblings or relatives if they are not available.
At the same time, friends from your childhood can also assist you in recalling some of them. These could have been considered simple pastimes at the time, but they were most likely not.
7. Take Note of How You Spend Your Free Time
This is when we assure you that all of your painstaking planning will pay off in the long run.
It’s a good idea to consider your hobbies and the things you naturally engage in when determining your natural talents and abilities.
Consider five things you enjoy doing over the course of a week and consider why you appreciate them.
Make a list of them and make a note of specific chores and why they are satisfying to you.
For example, if you set aside an hour every week to write and have a blog where you post your creative writing and op-ed pieces, your natural talents may include your ability to manage your time, tap into your creativity, and work independently.
Whatever your case, those things you do in your free time can be counted as what you’re really good at.
Conclusion
The first step toward success is figuring out what you’re good at.
It’s easier to know what to focus on if you can tell what you’re good at from what you’re enthusiastic about.
Focusing on what you’re passionate about allows you to feel fulfilled by making a difference in other people’s lives.
Focusing on your strengths, on the other hand, leads to the achievement of personal objectives.
References
- zaengle.com – 3 Benefits of Knowing Your Strengths
- indeed.com – How to Answer the Question: “What Am I Good At?”
- quora.com – How do you answer the question “what are you good at?”?
- cleverism.com – How to Figure Out What You’re Good At (Not Just What You’re Passionate About)
- zippia.com – 8 STEPS TO HELP YOU ANSWER THE QUESTION “WHAT AM I GOOD AT?”
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