“Humility is not thinking less of yourself, it’s thinking of yourself less.”
(C.S. Lewis or Rick Warren)
This quote is attributed to C.S. Lewis and Rick Warren. I don’t have time to sort it out the attribution and it is the sentiment I want to focus on. I’ve met a lot of very talented people who don’t think they are very good at what they do. Or, they at least say they don’t think they are very good at what they do.
Is this humility? If you are in alignment with the quote, then saying you are not good at something when you are is not humility.
To find where we add the most value, we need to acknowledge our gifts and skills. What are you good at? It’s OK to own that list! We all have a unique combination of natural talent, skills, and experience which make us uniquely qualified for Important Work.
Important Work serves others. Important Work makes a difference in people’s lives. Are you great at designing products? Or explaining what those products do? Or helping customers with troubleshooting? Or perhaps you are a natural encourager or you make people laugh. The combinations are endless.
What if you never acknowledge any of the ways you add value to the world, to others? People will never know what opportunities to present to you that might be a good fit.
Give yourself permission to say, “I’m good at x.” Be confident in that fact. Considering how you can use those things you are good at for the good of others is in the spirit of the quote about humility we started with.
It’s unlikely any of us know everything about a particular topic. There are probably people who are more advanced in the field you or I are in. But that doesn’t mean we’re not good at what we do. And it doesn’t mean we don’t make a difference in other people’s lives when we apply what we are good at to our job and to our outside interests.
Take the step and acknowledge what you are good at, whether it is technical or more of a soft skill. If you’re thinking what you are good at is not worth much, know that what comes easy for you or what you’ve taught yourself to do does not come easy for other people. They have their own skills and talents that come easy for them. And that is what is beautiful about life! We need everyone’s varied gifts, skills, and experience.
engineer your life
Make a list of things you are good at. Acknowledge this list as a fact. Consider how you might use those things for the good of others. If someone asks you what you are good at, you’ll be able to state with confidence what you are good at, without risking humbleness.