Not really good at anything? This is for you!

You don't have a passion, you're not really good at anything, and as a result you feel completely inferior in a society that worships people with exceptional talents as if they are the epitome of success and happiness. Welcome to the club, dear human. You belong to the vast majority of the population, and we have a lot of fun over here. After all, you do not need a passion or talent to be perfectly happy. Here are some insights to help you find YOUR authentic path to happiness and success.

Are you truly not good at anything?

Let's start off with a reality check.

Recognize this? ‘’Everybody can do what I can do’’, ‘’I’m pretty good at it, but not good enough to "really" make it’’, or ‘’I’m not even trained in this’’. No matter what you believe, please hear me when I say this: The fact that you don't see the value of something (yet), doesn't mean it isn't there. So, maybe you've long been doing something very valuable, but as a favor to friends, as a hobby or as a matter of course. That’s a very real possibility, you know.

Self-confidence comes from action

Besides, you don't need stories, explanations, years of experience or degrees to be ''allowed'' to be good at something. Only you have had your set of experiences. Only you have the combination of your interests. Only you are curious about that one special thing (or that one thing and that other thing and that other other thing). There is no need to have a name for it yet, you don't have to understand it, you don't have to explain it, you don't have to believe in it 100%, you just have to do it. Then, and only then, you will begin to see and feel it. Not the other way around.

A word about the passion monster

Regardless of whether it is actually true that you are not really good at anything, in this day and age it is incredibly difficult to have such a conviction. Nowadays, we seem to believe that everyone has a passion, and, therefore, needs to figure out what it is. And the people who have found their passion are the heroes of our time. And then there comes the other 95% of the population waddling along feeling seriously inferior. ‘’Do I even have a passion? Apparently, what I do should make me extremely happy, but I don't think it's all that special. It's just fine. But clearly that's not enough.’’

Good or happy?

The point here is that you only think you have to have a passion and/or talent because all of society acts as if you need one to be valuable and cool and what not - which is most definitely NOT the case. That desire to excel at something does not originate from your core. In fact, the only desire that comes from within is to, every day, become a little more of who you really are. With or without a passion or talent. Good at something, not good at anything, or average at very many things. That's not what life is about. You'll only be happy and successful if you walk your own path.

“If you can see your path laid out in front of you step by step, you know it’s not your path. Your own path you make with every step you take. That’s why it’s your path.”

– Joseph Campbell

Creating YOUR path

Your authentic life starts with leaving the beaten path behind. Unfortunately, following your own path, and thus deviating from the norm, is never easy. Because, when you do, both your own brain and the people around you tend to approach and treat you as if you are out of your freaking mind. For example, when you choose not to put any more effort into finding a passion, and instead focus on making your current life as enjoyable as possible. Or throw yourself into something that no one saw coming. Or keep working on something when others would have quit.

Living an authentic life is like constantly jumping off a cliff

Every small, simple, almost invisible step on your authentic path is like jumping off a giant cliff. So, being inundated with all kinds of resistance, both from your loved ones (in the form of worries or criticisms), and from your own brain (in the form of self-doubt, perfectionism or procrastination), does not mean that you are doing something wrong. Rather, it means that you are creating your own path (and that people care about you!).

Every time you take a step, the moment it seems like you are surrendering to a free fall, a piece of your path will emerge, from out of nowhere, from your essence, and that is YOUR path.

And on your path, being good at something or not, is no longer relevant. The only thing that matters is living an authentic life and living it to the fullest. And maybe it turns out that you have a special talent for doing exactly that. How awesome would that be?