I have a theory that everyone has a gift. Not a gift that they have been given, but a gift that they can give to others.

Your gift is something you’re good at, and which enables you to expend minimal effort to achieve disproportionally large benefit in return.

If you’re an IT professional, you’ve probably encountered situations where you could spend a few minutes configuring a loved one’s hardware or software. For you, this was a trivial task, done in minutes or seconds without any real effort, but for your father or aunt it would have been a stressful ordeal, with no guarantee of success.

Regardless of the context, there’s something that you’re better at. Cooking, baking, drawing, painting, photography, singing, rhyming, writing, carpentry, plumbing… something. As you read this list, hopefully something leaped to mind. For me, this list include a few things where I have serious skills, and a bunch of things where I feel hopelessly challenged^[1].

Once you recognize and acknowledge your gift, you just need to keep your eyes open for opportunities to give it. Each day, look for the places where you could invest a few minutes to spare someone a few hours. Look for the chance to invest an hour to save someone days or weeks. And once you identify the opportunities, choose which of them to act upon. It’s not your responsibility to solve every problem you can, but your gift is only valuable when you share it.

What is your gift?

Who will you share it with?

^[1] One day I’ll encounter a situation where someone desperately needs a skilled swordsman. But it is not likely to be this day.