Recognising Talent and Expertise
Last week I spent a day with the remarkable Philippa Pride, an accomplished book editor and life coach, who is guiding me through the process of writing my first book and getting it published. With us was another writer, currently working on an amazing novel. The day was extraordinarily stimulating and it caused me to reflect on the importance of working with our natural talents.
Philippa has many years experience as an editor, and of coaching writers to produce their best possible work . Watching her give feedback to my colleague, I felt astonished by the depth of her perceptiveness and the skill with which she deployed her expertise. It was one of those extraordinary moments when you realise that something remarkable is happening – you are witnessing someone operating from their core genius, through the filter of many years of practice and application.
And what about the writer? Well, his natural talent shines off the page. Coupled with his desire to refine and improve his work, I’m certain we’ll be seeing his book on the shelves soon.
The experience of watching Philippa’s genius – natural flair for editing coupled with a high level of competence – alongside a writer’s latent talent got me thinking about how talent and expertise are treated in business life.
It’s common for large corporates to promote people into roles that don’t suit their natural gifts, in order to ‘develop’ them or ‘broaden’ their skills. Yet most of us don’t need more ‘development’ or a raft of new ‘skills’ – we need more encouragement to become exceptional in the deployment of our natural strengths. When people struggle to achieve in areas outside of their natural competence, massive internal conflicts result. Confidence is lost as individuals begin to suspect that they are ‘not good enough’ or ‘don’t have what it takes’. Compare this discouragement to the exhilaration felt when an individual plays to their strengths. Which delivers the most benefit to the overall organisation?
The next time you witness genius in action, comment on it. Encourage people to express more of what they’re best at. Then sit back and watch the magic.
Tags: business coaching, career development, coaching, leadership, Love your work, stimulation and motivation, strengths deployment, strengths finder, talent development
Leave a Reply
About Kate Warren
Kate Warren is the founder of Brightlife. She is a leader in the field of personal and professional development, and is a sought-after speaker, teacher, and coach. Kate is passionate about helping people to unlock their personal and professional potential. She is an NLP Master Practitioner, a Certified NLP Coach, a Master of Group Leadership Dynamics, and the U.K.'s first certified WealthyMind™ trainer. In 2008 her business success was recognised when she was invited to join ‘Courvoisier the Future 500’, an elite group of the 500 rising stars of British business.
Connect with Kate
Courvoisier The Future 500 is an exclusive member's network of the country's most innovative business brains and creative talent. Being awarded a place shows dedication and commercial success.