In the midst of all the ideas received from the various trainers out there, how many of these are you implementing? How often do you really find yourself focusing on the client and their needs? How much of your creativity are you putting into your business? Do you feel a sense of fulfillment or a sense of relief when a transaction closes?

Answering these questions may give you a barometer of how you are being the best “you” in your business. We often find ourselves in a groove that keeps us locked into a certain behavior. What I want to offer to you today is to think “bigger” and “better”.

To be successful, I believe it takes being aware of our individual talents and then putting them to use.  We so often underestimate our natural talents and try to follow the path that others follow.  The interesting thing about doing that is when we connect to our natural abilities and follow that path, our lives become easier and more joyful. It seems easy enough, doesn’t it, but actually so many of us doubt ourselves and what we can actually accomplish and just follow the crowd.

In actuality, we are taught this early on in our career. How many times have you been told to find someone who is successful and to take them to lunch and pick their brains to find out what they do? There is nothing wrong with this technique with the exception that the person in question may be very strong in one area that is just not your strength.  What if you took several people to lunch and made a list of the most appealing ideas you came up with?

When you are done with this article, sit down and make a list of your strengths or talents. Do not limit these to business or professional characteristics. Open yourself and really think of what you are good at and you enjoy. For instance, you may be an exceptional parent or perhaps you love to ski. In the normal business world, these are not thought of as a benefit but let’s look at them from a different angle.  Could you possibly find a group, a ski club perhaps, and start making connections with people you would enjoy spending time with? You already know networking is crucial, so why not do it where you feel the best?

Some people I have coached feel overwhelmed by what they felt was necessary in their industry. One client in particular came from being a stay-at-home mom. When her children were in school she became a licensed real estate agent and quickly felt inadequate with the job when she observed some of her office mates’ work behaviors. She struggled with whether or not she fit in at all.  When I had her connect to what she felt she was really good at, she immediately went to her parenting but just as quickly blew this idea off since she could not see how this possibly related to real estate. In fact, she said that she really did not want to use her potential abilities in real estate. This was resolved when she understood that she would not be using these skills per se, but the trick was to begin to revalue herself with tuning into how good she felt about herself as a parent.

Many people I have coached have pulled themselves down in their careers only because they tried to mimic another and have ignored how talented and valuable they themselves were.