We're Good at the Things We Like

Read that again. It doesn’t say “We like the things we’re good at,” though that’s true as well. No, it says we’re good at the things we like. That statement was made to me just today in reference to something I hate to do and am not very good at. I just nodded, thinking I’d heard it the other way around, or that my sister had said it backwards. Then she repeated it and said, “It works the other way around, too, but we’re good at the things we like.”

It’s true. If we like something we’re willing to put the time into it to learn how to do it, for starters. Such is true with my “hate to do,” search engine optimization. Books on SEO make my eyes glaze over. Listening to someone talk about how to do it makes my ears glaze over. I hate it. It’s not interesting to me, and I’m not good at it.

On the other hand, I’m great at making web sites. I used to do it for a living and still design my own sites most of the time when I’m developing a site for a business or my personal use. The first time I picked up a book on web design, nearly a decade ago now, I knew this was something I could do. I LIKED it. And I’m good at it.

I’m not saying you shouldn’t, or can’t, be good at things you don’t like. I don’t like putting away the dishes or changing the cat litter, though I’m good at both those things.

What I’m saying is if you hate something, and you’re not good at it, maybe it’s time to stop beating yourself upside the head and find a way around it. Hire someone to do it. Barter with someone to do it—you do something they hate and are not good at. Do something else instead. Or learn to like it and get good at it.

So the next time you’re doing something you hate, and feel you’re not doing a good job, remember it’s not your fault. We’re good at the things we like.