Your Element

I recently finished the book, “Finding Your Element“ by Sir Ken Robinson. The book was interesting, and left me thinking about one particular point. 

Robinson believes,

“Being in your Element is where your natural aptitudes meet your passions.”

Aptitude is defined as an “inherent ability.” Robinson points out that there may be aptitude’s that you are unaware of because you have never actually experienced something. 

I have no idea if I am any good at snow skiing, water skiing or playing the violin because I have never attempted any of these. 

Now I can surmise that since I seem to not be athletically inclined, any kind of skiing probably wouldn’t have been my cup of tea. I’ve dabbled a little with piano and guitar, but didn’t seem to show a natural aptitude so I’m probably not an undiscovered violinist.

That being said it made me wonder what opportunities might have not popped up upon my radar that I might possibly have a natural aptitude for? Robinson is also quick to point out that aptitude and abilities are not necessarily the same. 

When I reflect on my teaching career I’m not really convinced that I was a natural born teacher. However, over many years I honed my abilities, and ended my career as a good teacher. 

Robinson encourages seeking out new opportunities to try. He also states that just because you have the aptitude for something you might not actually have any real interest or passion in doing it. 

This reminded me of one of my favorite sayings by Gretchen Rubin, “We can choose what we do, but not what we like to do.”

More so, Robinson reminds us, 

“Part of finding your Element is being open to the possibility that it might lie in a field you’ve never explored.”

I find this fascinating because over time I have narrowed my “interests” to areas where I know I can find success.

My point here is that it is never too late to check out something new. 

Wouldn’t it be exciting to discover a new found passion?