Leadership Apprentice Week 2

This week is going to be another exciting and hopefully eye-opening week. I really enjoyed hearing each of you discuss and present all the wonderful things people said about each of your unique abilities, talents, skills and gifts. 

This week is all about helping you do things that most people on this planet never do, and that's study and describe their uniqueness. 

This week I'll teach you how to summarize the very best of what you know about yourself now and present it in a way that is valuable for you and those you serve in your life.

We're going to focus on doing 3 things. 

First I'll help you get clear about your top 10 best habits, second, create your unique ability statement, and third write your first offer to promote online with the world using your unique ability and talents/skills
(this we will do in class when we meet next!)

It's critical that you have done week 1 and gathered feedback from your trusted peers. If you have not done so please do so now and then move forward with this week's instruction.

Study & Learn

Part 1: Discovering Your Top 10 Best Habits

It's time now to reflect, analyze and use the feedback you received in week 1 from your trusted peers to document your top 10 best habits.

Your best habits are the things you do automatically, every time, to get your best results in life. We're not talking about bad habits here. You want to shine the light on the best habits in your life that you've had all of your conscious life to this point. Your best habits are action steps you take naturally before or after situations in daily life. Your best habits are things you can strengthen once you are conscious of them.

The best way to discover your best habits is to think about the action step you consistently take following the words "I always..."

Here are some examples:

I always learn by trying

I always stay calm in stressful situations

I always help other people see the best in themselves

I always hug people

I always improve myself

I always stick to my values and beliefs

I always have fun

I always laugh

I always put myself in others shoe and see what they need

I always express my appreciation 

I always use metaphors and analogies to teach an idea

I always listen more than talk

I always think more than speak

I always share my ideas with people

I always take decisive action and learn from the results

Now, let's help you become conscious of your top 10 best habits now. 

Action Step 1: 

Get your journal and write the headline at the top of the page "My Top 10 Best Habits"

Now use the feedback from your trusted peers and your own thinking and fill in the blanks after the words "I always..." and do that 10 times like this:

1. I always....
2. I always....
3. I always....
4. I always....
5. I always....
6. I always....
7. I always....
8. I always....
9. I always....
10. I always....

Note, that your Top 10 habits are things that "sound like you". Your top 10 habits are not things that you hope you could do or things that you see in your friend. Your top 10 habits are things you are already doing and have been doing for as long as you can remember. 

To help you further you can check out my Top 10 Habits in my life:

1. I always...believe in myself and have confidence to do anything I put my mind to
2. I always...try to do the most efficient way of doing things
3. I always...smile and laugh and make people wonder sometime why I'm laughing
4. I always...analyze things and their deeper meaning
5. I always...strive to make people feel comfortable and include people who are alone
6. I always...organize complex things in step by step processes
7. I always...strive for personal, sincere 1-on-1 interaction with those I know
8. I always...build people up by encouraging them to do good things
9. I always...find energy having great philosophical & meaningful life discussions with people
10. I always...whistle or hum songs every day and/or listen to music

Notice that every statement I describe above starts with a verb. I encourage you to do the same when you write down your top 10 habits.

Action Step 2:

As you write down your top 10 habits ask yourself...

• Do I always do this?
• Do I feel passionate about doing it this way?
• Does it feel like it would be wrong to operate any other way?
• If you feel so then you're on the right track with doing this assignment correctly!

Action Step 3:

Now that you've documented your top 10 best habits, go share them with one or more of your trusted peers who know you well and ask if anything is missing. Ask him/her if the statements you wrote "sound like you"?

In many situations you could take your top 10 best habits and give them to any person you know without telling them its a list about you and they would know its you by reading it.

Know & Understand

Part 2: Writing your Unique Ability Statement (Talent + Passion)

Now it's time to walk you through how to create and write your one sentence Unique Ability Statement.

Here are some things to understand first:

• Your unique ability statement is a one-line statement that starts with "My Unique Ability is...." and then describes your talent (what you do) and then words that describe WHY you do it (your passion). 
• Your unique ability statement describes the core of what you love to do and do best in all areas of your life.
• Your statement can be applied to many different situations, activities and circumstances.
• Your unique ability statement is something you've been since you were young.
• It may not seem exciting or special to you because it comes so naturally.
• Other people may recognize it in your before you see it yourself.
• What you write down will evolve throughout your life and will improve the more you implement.
• As you test your statement with people in the world you'll be able to refine it even more.

As you find the right words to say know that it's not always easy to do since it's so close to you. Your unique ability is also something that is more than just the words you write down; that is important to know.

As you wrestle with how to word your unique ability statement you'll eventually create something that feels just right to you. Remember the points above as you brainstorm.

Become & Serve

Action Step 1: Writing the "talent" part of your statement

Begin first by collecting some key words from the feedback from your trusted peers and look at the details of your Top 10 Best Habits. Also look at any other personality tests or other feedback you may have.

List any words you think are important that describe your talent and passion. The more the better. You might not sue them all, but it's better to have more to work with than less.

After you have written down in your journal all the most important words that describe your talents and passions start writing down the first part of your Unique Ability Statement starting with the words "My Unique Ability is..." and describe what you do (your talent).

There is something at the very core or heart of all the activities you're really good at and love doing. You're looking for what's common, for a "theme" or pattern behind your actions. Basically you're questioning "What am I doing or providing?

Your statement is for you above all, it's not for anyone else. It's not a comparison game. When you read your statement you want it to make you say "yeah, that's me! that is what I do! I love doing that."

Look for action words to get to the heart of your superior abilities, talents. 

Here are some examples of what others have written for the first part of their unique ability statement:

• My unique ability is having purposeful conversations...
• My unique ability is analyzing details and creating systems...
• My unique ability is connecting with people in a fun a lively way...
• My unique ability is communicating with energy...
• My unique ability is helping people feel peaceful...
• My unique ability is providing comfort to those who need it...
• My unique ability is empathizing with people and their unique situations in life...
• My unique ability is connecting people to their wisdom...
• My unique ability is developing authentic, real relationships with people...
• My unique ability is caring for others and pets...

 Note: Your unique ability is NOT an activity like soccer, art and it's not a profession like being a doctor, carpenter, teacher, etc. It's not selling or writing. Those verbs are too specific to apply to a variety of situations. Selling and writing for example would be unique activities instead. You're writing the "talent" at this point.

Action Step 2: Writing the "passion" part of your statement

Now you're ready to do the last part of your unique ability statement which is to describe the passion part. The "Why?" or Why do you do this? What's your motivation? Why do you bother with that talent described earlier, why do you care?

The passion part of your statement describes what you really value. Many times this part of the statement is much easier to come up with.

And here are some examples of the second half of your unique ability statement:

• ...so they feel loved.
• ...to help God's children realize their potential.
• ...to avoid pain and unnecessary problems in life.
• ...so they can pay it forward and help others.
• ...to help people have fun and improve their life.

Action Step 3: Combine the Talent & Passion statements together

Now go ahead and combine the first and second parts you brainstormed above into ONE statement. This one statement is your unique ability statement. Here are some examples of some unique ability statements other people have written.

• My unique ability is having purposeful conversations so they feel loved.
• My unique ability is helping people feel peaceful so they can live a life of less stress.
• My unique ability is caring for others and pets so the world will be a kinder place to live in.
• My unique ability is connecting with people in a fun and lively way to empower them to be confident in themselves and experience the joy of new possibilities.
• My unique ability is empathizing with people and taking action so they feel cared for.
• My unique ability is connecting people with their wisdom to transform their future.

Once you're done with all the action steps above come prepared next time we meet with these two documents, your Top 10 Best Habits and your Unique Ability Statement.

Being able to communicate what you love to do will increase the likelihood of you having greater opportunities in your life to do those things that give you the most energy and allows the world to be blessed the most because you're letting your light shine bright!