A recent conversation with a mentor put a new twist on some long held beliefs for me. I’ve always told others, “follow your gifts, and do what comes easy.” Over the years with my three daughters growing up and wondering what to major in at college, I always said “go with easy, you’ll get great grades and have fun at the same time”. I mentioned the same to my mentor. He agreed with the idea of following one’s gifts, but changed my thinking with the idea that what feels natural may not necessarily be easy (much the same as “simple but not easy”).
His counsel was to follow your gifts, and go with what feels natural. Not easy, natural … think spontaneous, unaffected, genuine, innate, instinctive, legitimate. Not just easy. There’s a difference. Easy can often be taken for granted. Easy can make for lazy. Natural makes for fully heartfelt. A musician friend named Maynard told me one time, “My wife always asks, why do you sing all those sad songs? And I said, cause I like ‘em!” Sad comes natural for Maynard. Listen to Maynard Holbrook sing sometime and you’ll know exactly what I mean by natural. Do what is natural for you. That in fact should be your path in life.
I want to add something here that I’ve learned over the last couple of years too: what’s in our hearts and what is natural for us at any given point on the path is not static. It’s dynamic. It will evolve, and I’ll add a related truth; everything ends. My father passed away two years ago; my mother now suffers from Alzheimer’s; I recently ended what had been a twenty-five-year business affiliation; and my wife and I are now officially empty nesters after raising three beautiful daughters. Change too is natural.
Let’s do something different – we can’t help but get better:
- Buy the book – pick up Strength Finders 2.0, for only $16.95 you get a powerful assessment of what comes natural for you.
- Give the book – buy an extra copy and gift it to someone you know who is trying to find their way.
Help another understand what comes natural to them, and then share what you learned about yourself. Life isn’t always easy, but consider going for natural every time.
-Don Brown
don@donbrown.org
Don Brown dedicates his career to ‘helping people with people’ in leadership, sales and customer service. Bilingual and experienced at the executive and line-level alike, you see the results of his work across dozens of industries, including brewing, automotive, airline, banking and medical equipment.
Speaking, writing, coaching and selling to the best – Ford Motor Company, Anheuser-Busch, United Airlines, Harley-Davidson, Jaguar Cars, Hilton Hotels and many, many more – Don takes great pride in long-standing customer relationships (some running well over twenty years).
