You Can’t Do What They Do

“I can’t do what they do.”

I can’t do what they do. It’s a statement many of us learn in grade school and carry with us throughout our lives. We can spend hours lamenting as to why we don’t have the same talents and abilities as our teammates.

It’s true we can’t do what they do (at least not everything and not in the same way), but why should we?

In sports, it’s the unique skills and abilities of individual athletes that give a team its talent. The same is true in business. Think about what you (and only you) bring to your team:

• Your background and experiences
• Your education (formal and informal)
• Your “raising” (how you grew up)
• What you learned from your first boss and past colleagues
• Your values and beliefs
• Your natural strengths and talents

All of these things give you a unique perspective and a unique role on your team. So stop worrying about who you’re not. It’s too hard to try to be like someone else for a long period of time.

Start being who you are. Being yourself is easy, and your teammates will like you better because you’re authentic and you’re not trying so hard. Focus on adding value to your team and your work by applying the very things that make you “you.”