As a person with an averagely wide skillset, I often think on how some of these dormant skills can be put to use. Yes, I took one art class in high school purely to fill up my schedule and yes I it came as no surprise that I was quite good at art as I enjoyed it very much as a kid. However, I had not even touched a paintbrush during all of high school until that class, and haven’t touched one since. I use my public speaking skills to present class projects and then never think of them again, ran only in PE and haven’t run since, helped with one fundraiser and then haven’t participated in one since, even though I was good at all these things.
I often think: “what a waste of potential”, this led me to my question. I have always been passionate about helping people, whether it be being there for my friends if they’re going through a rough time or need someone to talk to, or thinking on a future career where I can actively help change people’s lives. If there was any way I could put my dormant abilities to use, it should be to create any sort of impact possible. This could range simply from making someone’s day, to creating a real change in society. In the past, I have always enjoyed helping my teammates from my gymnastics club, either helping them learn new skills or giving them advice when they struggled physically and mentally.
In this project I will be researching means people have gone through to find solutions to problems, what it means to impact society and what different ways of impacting society look like, and which of my personal abilities would be most useful to do so. I will be researching what kind of aid is most needed right now, and what transferrable skills can be used to help in more ways than one.
Hi Laura,
I enjoyed reading your blog post and am interested in the topic you chose to research. You indicated that we may impact the world and individuals around us by using our varied range of skills, whether through minor or huge acts. I agree with this remark, especially given the world’s current issues and obstacles. Similarly, I’m also curious whether there is a way to truly utilize my abilities to have a greater influence on others. How do you think we can motivate others to make an impact?
I’m looking forward to reading your next blog!
Lily Phan
Hi Laura,
I can really relate to your explanation of often common skills and how they are not put to use most of the time. I encountered a video (linked below) during the annual SD43 Gifted Conference about nurturing what we’re good at and finding jobs/hobbies that have desired traits similar to our personalities, that I think you might find helpful in your research.
https://www.bing.com/ck/a?!&&p=7ef7e90f106acb59JmltdHM9MTY5Nzg0NjQwMCZpZ3VpZD0yNDE5MGQzYS0wN2M3LTY0YzEtMjY3OC0xZjk2MDY3MzY1OGYmaW5zaWQ9NTU2Mw&ptn=3&hsh=3&fclid=24190d3a-07c7-64c1-2678-1f960673658f&u=a1L3ZpZGVvcy9yaXZlcnZpZXcvcmVsYXRlZHZpZGVvP3E9dGVkK3RhbGtzK3dlYWtuZXNzK3RvK3N0cmVuZ3RoJm1pZD04M0M0NEQ2OTRDMkI3OEI0OTY3MzgzQzQ0RDY5NEMyQjc4QjQ5NjczJkZPUk09VklSRQ&ntb=1
~Amy
Hi Laura,
I love your question so much! I can really relate to it, because I also feel that I have a good set of skills, but I’m not sure how to put them to use to make social change. Like you, I am also very passionate about helping people and I am really excited to read your blog posts and find out more ways that I can do so. A question that I have for you is how are you going to find out how your skills can be used to help people? What kinds of research are you going to do? Here are some links that might help with your inquiry.
https://www.voicesofyouth.org/blog/social-impact-youth#:~:text=Youth%20can%20play%20an%20important,awareness%20about%20important%20social%20issues.
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0016328715000075
I’m looking forward to reading your next post!
Penelope