Your talents and skills represent a set of abilities that constitute a major part of your potential. They are seeds of greatness which predispose you to make a significant contribution in the field of your calling. According to M. Buckingham and D.O. Clifton, they determine your strength zone, the area you should focus on for maximum effectiveness.
“A winner is someone who recognizes his God-given talents, works his tail off to develop them into skills, and uses these skills to accomplish his goals.” Larry Bird
You have come into this world gifted with specific talents in order to meet some specific needs in your generation. Moreover you possess certain capacities for carrying out complex patterns of behavior smoothly and adaptively – capacities that you have acquired and developed over the years from your experiences and your education. These capacities are nothing else but your skills.
Even though it is said that “Talent is overrated”, talents are , as would say S. Covey, seeds of greatness which when they match some particular needs would allow you to make a significant contribution in this world.
In their book, Now, discover your strengths: How to develop your talents and those of the people you manage, M. Buckingham and D.O. clifton state that each person’s greatest room for growth is in the areas of his or her greatest strength. They also suggest that your strengths are determined by the combination of your talents, knowledge and skills.
Both your talents and skills constitute a major component of your potential which will be best maximized in the framework of your life’s purpose. Pay no attention to your imperfections and weakness as they will take you nowhere. As you focus on your strengths and grow into your potential, they will gradually vanish away. Do not make the mistake of overvaluing what you are not. As John C. Maxwell advices, develop the talent(s) you have, not the one(those) you want.
God did not make any mistake in gifting you with all the talents that you have. They are meant to enable you to be successful in carrying out your mission and make a difference in this world.