Are you working against the grain?

“Are you working against the grain – or are you working in accordance with your natural talents?” This is the question I’ve been asking over the last couple months as I meet people and as I speak to groups. Most times people have no clear off-the-cuff answer. We need to explore the question to gain clarity.

And it is an important question. When it comes to problem solving, creativity, and initiating action we each do things in our own unique way. when we are forced to go against our natural talents, either as a result of our job description, expectations (of others or ourselves) or any other reason, the result is diminished performance and stress.

So what does it mean to work in accordance with your natural talents? Here’s a question to ponder: can you remember a time when you went against tradition – or against what was expected and tackled a project by doing it your way? (You can almost hear Sinatra, can’t you?) Did you ever say to heck with the way others are doing it – I’m taking control and I’m going to trust my instincts and do it this way… And as you recall those examples now – notice how the results were fantastic! You most likely accomplished more, with less effort, in less time when you trusted your gut. Now that is working in accordance with you natural talents.

When left to do things your way – how do you do them? If your ‘back is up against the wall – how do you problem solve?

If you’d like to learn exactly what your natural talents are, send me an email and I can answer all your questions. But for now, let me give you an overview so you get an idea of what it means to utilize your talents.

Since we already agreed you get more accomplished with less effort; doesn’t it make sense to do things this way more often? Unless of course, you want to work harder for minimal results.

When you did things your way, did you start out by researching what you needed to do or did you start by organizing and planning the project out? Did you brain storm lots of options or did you create models of and build prototypes?

How you begin is hard-wired into your being. There is no right or wrong way. that’s why we purposely refer to these as “talents.” Talents are all good.

Think back to when you did it your way… Did you research in depth, define specific objectives and learn how it has always been done? Or did you review and edit the data  and start with the highest probability? Maybe you didn’t research all that much and natural went to estimating, approximating and condensing the data. Think back – how did you handle your need to research? How did you naturally do this – did you simplify or did you specify?

And when you organized did you use charts and graphs, itemize procedures and make categories? Or did you realign, monitor and review lists. Or maybe you more naturally went to creating shortcuts and varied your approach while multi-tasking and enjoying interruptions. How did you do it? Did you adapt or did you systematize?

When you were in the grove of doing things your way did you initiate innovation, defy the odds, ad lib and create urgency or did you conform to the accepted concepts and stick with what was familiar – protecting the status quo? Or maybe you fell somewhere in the middle adjusting deadlines and reducing risks while trying out new ideas. Do you see yourself anywhere in here? Any of these descriptions sound familiar to you? Where did you see yourself naturally – stabilizing or improvising? Or were you in between?

Do you naturally create abstract images, deal with abstractions and concoct out of thin air or did you naturally build and display prototypes and hand-crafted models? Or do you feel you are somewhere in between – more like you renovated, reproduced and fixed things? Where were you on this gauge? Did you imagine or did you build?

Take some time and remember when you accomplished more with less. You’ll probably be able to pick out some of your natural patterns from the brief descriptions above. Then, consider your current job. How do the requirements you have for this job match up with what feels right and natural to you? How do the expectations of your boss, supervisor, or partner match with how you are wired to do your best? If you suspect conflicts – I predict you are feeling the stress.

The good news is you can do something about this. While you can’t change the way you do things naturally, you can adjust how you do the job (within limits). You can’t change how you do things because this is not an emotional or intellectual issue. We are dealing with an entirely different part of your mind.

And I could go on and on for pages about this.  Instead, if you’d like to learn more, send an email to george@januscenter.com and request a free report called “Three Part of the Mind.” It’s an easy read in pdf format. No strings – just some great information.