In my coaching, I am fortunate to experience my clients discovering fulfillment in their chosen jobs and businesses as well as tapping into their full potential when these three components – talent, value and passion – balance together. This is my prescription as to how you find your best zone of excellence and power in your work.
Jim Collins talks about the hedgehog concept in his book ‘Good to Great’. Businesses create great businesses when all these three components come together. This also applies to our personal career success.
Your Talent
What do you excel at? What does your business excel at? Apple may say it’s ‘innovation’. You could be a talented coder. You may be brilliant at building a team. You are likely blessed with many talents.
Your Value
How valuable is your talent? Some professions pay well and others don’t. Some business products and services are valued highly and some less so. The more scarce the service/product is, often the higher valued it is. The more desired the talent is, the higher valued it is. When you have a talent that is highly valued, this makes a good career and business niche choice. However, keep in mind, fulfillment may not be there yet.
Your Passion
What are you deeply passionate about amongst your talents? What is your business passionate about? What are your people as a group passionate about? It may be technology. You may love adventures and challenges. How about people’s fulfillment? That is what I am passionate about.
The Perfect Balance
So what is one thing (or maybe several things) that you excel at, that you are also passionate about and that people will pay you for? You will find your fulfillment when all three elements come together and balance.
Now financial success like fulfillment and balance is all relative and subjective. You may have multiple talents that you excel at and you may have varying degrees of passion for them. You may be paid differently for those different areas as well. It is the balance that gives you fulfillment and financial success and that is truly sustainable.
Bonus Element
You are fulfilled when all three components come together. Working with business owners and leaders in various fields, I find that leaders are especially motivated when they are clear about their ‘why’ and when they have a clear social purpose and make a positive impact on this world. It gives us the additional edge to our motivation and competition. What is your positive impact?
Finding a fulfilling career and work is everyone’s pursuit just like most people seek happiness. Whether it is your business core competence, niche or your career choice, these three elements give such clarity in our lives.
We spend half of our waking hours on work and it is important that we are fulfilled in doing this work. My best wishes with your pursuit.
