finding your work sweet spot - genuine interest, skills & opportunity

You’re going to be Unhappy ForeverUnless You Find Your “Work Sweet Spot”

And here’s how:

In a perfect world, we’d all get paid doing something we truly love to do

Unfortunately, the world is far from perfect and work leaves the majority of us unhappy

Scott Belsky, Adobe’s Vice President of Community, co-founder and head of Behance, and bestselling author of Making Ideas Happen, knows why:

“There are two kinds of work in the world. The first is the laborious kind, which I call ‘work with obligation’… work which we do because of a contractual obligation. The second –very different—type of work that we do is ‘work with intention.’”

Working with intention is where you want to be

Because this is the kind of work that you are invested in

It could be writing your next novel

Practicing for your new opera

Working on a business plan for the restaurant you’re putting up

Isn’t it logical?

Putting intention behind everything you do will allow you to make an impact on the projects that matter the most

So how do we go about working with intention in every aspect of our lives?

“being known as a problem solver is a good thing. But when people start looking at you to put out their fires… that is different. They will keep coming back and you will soon be an expected service.

The secret: finding your work “sweet spot”

Your Work “sweet spot” is the intersection of three factors: Genuine Interest, Skills, and Opportunity

Shall we break it down?

Genuine Interest

This is what you are truly and deeply interested in. The things you’d do even if you didn’t get paid. The things you can talk about for hours on end.

Is it Chinese food? Is it Scandinavian furniture? Is it quantum physics? Is it viral marketing?

A genuine interest isn’t the one that promises the largest amount of economic gain, but it’s the one that surpasses money because it’s so treasured

Key Skills

These are the things that you’re naturally good at. What are your inherent skills? What are you exceptional at?

Is it public speaking? Do you have a natural gift for acting? Do you have a knack for carpentry?

The skills that you possess are indicative of the opportunities that could thrive under your care

Opportunity Stream

An opportunity, no matter how small or seemingly inconsequential, is a stepping stone that will bring you closer to your genuine interests

In fact, many opportunities are entirely circumstantial, a chance meeting, a mutual friend, someone you met in line at the counter

Use every network that you have in order to increase your opportunity stream

Let’s put it all together…

Genuine interests, skills, and opportunities only work when they are put together

Think about it: a passion for acting and the telephone number ofthe best talent scouts in the country don’t matter unless you actually have the chops for it

Therefore, the most important thing to do is to find your “trifecta”

Because your maximum potential is unlocked at its intersection

The “intersection you” is a veritable force of nature: passionate, full of conviction, without doubts or hesitation

The “intersection you” rises above short-term rewards and the need for approval

The “intersection you” can successfully turn a hobby into a lucrative and fulfilling calling

As a leader, one of your duties is to lead your partners and employees to find their own “sweet spot”

So take some time to seek out their interests and natural skills

Continue to help them increase their opportunity stream

Because in the end, the best way to change the world is to gently pull the people you know into this intersection

Because happy people create happy workers, and happy workers create happy labor forces, and happy labor forces create a powerful economy, and a powerful economy will bolster many families, for generations to come.

Do you agree?

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