Talent Stacking - Escaping Competition Through Authenticity
Following on from last week's topic of being your authentic self. I want to talk about how we can be completely authentic through “talent stacking”.
Happy New Week!
Following on from last week's topic of being your authentic self. I want to talk about how we can be completely authentic through “talent stacking”.
If you’re not the very best at one thing, it’s hard to be compensated by the market. Scott Adams says there are two ways to become extraordinary.
Become the best at one specific thing.
Become very good (top 25%) at two or more things.
“Most people can – with practice – develop a variety of skills that work well together. I call this idea the Talent Stack.” Scott Adams
You can become the best at one specific thing (which is extremely difficult), or you can become very good at two or more things. Scott’s unique talent stack includes; drawing + writing + business skills + work ethic + risk tolerance + sense of humor. In order to stand out and be extraordinary, you should mix all your talents that work well together to create a unique proposition.
I believe my talent stack is
Work ethic - One of my core values is to work extremely hard and have that desire to keep working hard regardless of the situation i’m in.
Marketing - Over the years I’ve built up specific knowledge and experience in marketing. I’m able to understand and speak to different target audiences to get them to perform a specific action.
Networking - Networking didn’t come naturally to me as I am very reserved but understanding the power of networking, I made a huge effort to perfect this skill. I am able to speak with anyone confidently and offer some sort of value. Networking has helped me to speak and work with top brands and people.
Writing - I started mastering the skill of writing so I could share and communicate my ideas in written form.
Business - From a young age I have been very interested in business, I even studied it at University. This has led me to have a good understanding of business, what it takes to create a good business, and how to succeed in business.
Everything that seems brand-new is just a new combination of different things. The more fields you have a good understanding of the more you can merge them together and bring them together and create something unique.
The talent stacking approach does three things: It increases the chance of success for most people, makes it easier to learn and grow, and gives you the chance to pivot and avoid being outdated in a constantly-changing world.
You create your own category and uniquely stand out. This builds on Naval’s quote “escape competition through authenticity”. When you combine your personality and multiple skills, no one can compete with you on being you. So build some skills, and become very good at them (don’t worry about being the very best). Combine them together to create something that will make you stand out and the world will appreciate.
Something interesting to watch - I just dropped a new podcast episode with Tej Talks, a seasoned property investor. Give it a watch!
Have a great week!