Using Our Talents

In my previous story on this monetized blog of mine, I shared my thoughts on how we can attract money. I think my ideas were sound, but what I didn't say is that, to me, the best way of attracting money is utilizing our talents in work that makes us feel we are making a positive contribution in society because doing so will bring us the peace of mind we all yearn for.

The young Jewish rabbi Jesus Christ, the greatest teacher who ever lived, must have understood the value of talents when He narrated the parable of the talents. If you can't recall what that parable is about, I urge you to turn to your Bible and read it. Enlightening it is.

Talents have value. If utilized, they make productive use of time and bring a feeling of satisfaction. The revered anti-apartheid hero Nelson Mandela, for instance, did some gardening during his prison years. He planted a variety of vegetables which brought him an immense sense of fulfillment.

And the respected Colin Powell, America's first black chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, enjoyed fixing cars. He would disassemble a car engine and put it back together. When he was retiring from the U.S. military in 1993, he was gifted a rusted-out '66 Volvo by President Bill Clinton. The Volvo was probably for him to work on.

Those were Nelson Mandela and Colin Powell. And like them, each one of us has a talent. It could be singing, writing, speaking, gardening, playing soccer, working with numbers, tinkering with machines, being accepting of others, or just being nice.

Even though everyone possesses a talent, most people do not develop their talents to a level that will make them a success. For some, it is the fear of standing out from the crowd that makes them settle for jobs that have nothing to do with their talents. They thus end up leading mediocre lives.

Honestly, pursuing a career that utilizes our talents is the wisest decision we can make. Not only will it make us peaceful and self-reliant, it will also lead to a happy marriage if we choose to tie the knot. I am saying so because it has dawned on me that people's attitudes towards their jobs affect the overall tone and texture of their marriages.

If two married people do jobs they love, their marriage is more likely to be happy and satisfying, for as the saying goes, "nothing succeeds like success." But if one or both of them have boring jobs, their marriage is bound to become stale.

So I advise youngsters not to rush into marriage. They should instead take time to hone their talents, and then choose a career that utilizes those talents. Rushing into marriage will force them to take up any job just to feed their families. And boring jobs, like I have said, will affect the quality of their marriage.

Perhaps they should first volunteer their talents, be it in church, in a company or at school, since it will help them develop the talents and learn how to get along with people. But at some point after they have gained the necessary experience, they should find ways of generating an income from those talents. Ciao!

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RECOMMENDATION: If you've enjoyed the above story on using our talents, you might also enjoy another one on "Treating Life as a Gift" which I wrote several years ago. Just click on that link in blue to dive straight into the story.