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Something that would seem rather obvious to most people on a Friday evening on a bus is how many people are actually enjoying what they do. You don't have to be a brainiac to figure out that those with the longest faces quite probably hate their jobs. And what about the other people, the ones who actually enjoy what they do and are probably successful doing it? They are there also, you just see it in their faces. Satisfied and happy people are really everywhere to be found. The difference between the two could be something which, in appearance, would appear to be quite obvious. Those who are successful in life and business because one projects into the other, are those who had the chance to take advantage of their talents. Now, that doesn't sound too hard, right? But it is. According to Dr. Tom Rath, author of best-selling "Strengthsfinder 2.0," finding and developing your talents is quite a process. "I am concerned that there may be a majority of people who go on their entire lifetime without having the chance to develop and exploit their natural talents," expresses Rath in an interview with EL UNIVERSAL in English. The doctor considers that underdeveloped talents are "the source of one of our gravest problems today" and it's all caused by what comes down to a very basic, yet important, thing. "We don't have a language on which to talk about our talents and what we are good at in a common language. That's the reason why Gallup (the book's publisher) is trying to inspire people to give the world a common language ... To describe our natural talents," he said. One could argue that, if given the chance, you would do the things that you like the most and enjoy them. Therefore, you should be very successful in doing them because you enjoy it. Nothing further from the truth in reality: The things that you enjoy are not necessarily the ones you excel at. "There are things that people like or enjoy. I may really enjoy playing golf, but I don't have a lot of talent for it and no matter how hard I try I am not going to be a world class in that area. I think that it is important to see the difference between interests and natural talents, the difference between the two. "The things you like, your interests, are things that you like to do that are not essential, and natural talents are things in where you experience more rapid success than other people who are trying to do the same things. So, they are the things that you naturally do better than most other people," he said. The process, as exposed in his book, now available in Mexico, is presented as a series of reflections on successes and failures, as well as free online exercises to help the reader find his or her strengths. "It is important to talk about your natural talents and your interests. It is important to rule out if you are enjoying what you are doing through the day. There are three important variables to be met. One is that you have a natural talent to do something. The second one is if you have the interest to do it and the third one is that what you do serves other people and serves your community," expresses Rath. The rewards, it seems, go farther away from just financial gain. "If you're using your strengths most of the time … you feel better about what you are doing, you have more energy. Your strength is important for achievement, it's important for your relationships," he points out. The proposal is worth considering and it could be very well the reason of the few smiles we see on Friday on the way home, shining among the contorted features of disgruntled employees. More information. Tom Rath's official webpage: http://www.tomrath.org/ Strenghtsfinder 2.0 http://www.tomrath.org/book/strengthsfinder/ The book is available in Spanish in major libraries in Mexico.
