You know how some people can just do certain things? 

Like speak in a convincing manner, or move their bodies well, or understand people well, or even have an aptitude for maths. This is an ability.

It is the capacity to do something, which you either do without necessarily knowing how, or you are able to learn it very quickly, because you have an underlying natural ability for it.

Ability is one of the most difficult traits to assess, understand and accept.

 We are taught that we can achieve anything that we put our minds to, unless we lack the fundamental capabilities. We are also taught that perseverance and hard work yield results except if we just can’t do it. Life has a way of giving us lessons, and the toughest ones to learn are those that make us feel less than we thought of ourselves.

The opposite side of the coin is the realisation when you do things more easily than others. The awareness that you encompass a capability that you never realised you had. A friend of mine started learning karate at age 22. When he was 25 years old, he represented his country in an international karate championship, making him the world champion. The funny thing is that he had never shown a real interest in karate before. He excelled in school sport and knew he was athletic, but it was by chance that a friend of his invited him to join a class, and the rest, as they say, is history.

Activating your ability means using your potential to achieve something. To activate is to initiate your capacity and trigger it into motion. This is a challenging and exciting process, which can be life changing on many levels. 

Developing competencies is a process. Some areas evolve quicker than others. This may not be due to a natural ability, but rather the difficulty of the task, the resources required, the access to information, or ease with which experience can be gained in that specific field. When we speak of activating ability, we are delving into an introspective and sometimes uncomfortable process through which we emerge wiser, and often far more potent than when we started. 

It can be emotional to discover that you embody a capability that you were not aware of. Conversely, it can be distressing to discover that you are incapable of doing something that was meaningful to you.

What Activating Abilities Means

The principle of activating your abilities is to take the personal time to understand your own potential, and the power that lies within you. This is a matter of reflecting on the things that come easily to you, the areas of interest to you, and the results which seem to naturally fall into place when you perform them. This is not to say that your abilities reflect purely in the things you do well, or in the things that come easily to you. That would be oversimplifying the concept of an ability. Rather, that knowing what you do well is a great starting point to dig deeper into what you may be able to do well.

To activate is to make something work, to put it into action or operation. Wouldn’t it be tragic if you have budding capacities within you that you don’t know you have? The concept that you could grow one prospective ability should be enough motivation for you to start the process of seeking out what abilities you have.

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It’s perfectly acceptable for someone to make the choice not to use the potential that they have, we call them under-achievers, meaning that they could achieve more than they do, because they do not use their natural gifts. This is a personal preference, and there is absolutely nothing wrong with making this decision for yourself.

The opposite side is the overachiever who appears to lack inborn abilities and yet is able to work hard enough or smart enough to reach goals that others may not. The overachiever is usually someone who has a passion for something and regardless of their abilities, they will find a way to do what they want to do. This is a remarkable achievement and worthy of great respect, particularly when there will always be others who have the inborn ability and could have reached the same result so much easier than the over achiever.

Activating your abilities looks at those who want to push themselves and have the drive to do so in the direction that will be most comfortable for them. Not in a lazy or sloppy way, just working according to their natural flow. When you are in your flow, you are so immersed and comfortable in your task, that time eludes you.

When you activate your abilities, you enable yourself to work in your flow. The concept was originally defined by psychologist Mihaly Csikszentmihaliyi who referred to being in a positive state of mental being, so that you are completely absorbed, focused, and involved in your activities. This is so complete that you lose track of time. It is only when you work within your area of flow, that you are activating your natural abilities, and allowing yourself to do whatever it is that you do best.

The most intriguing part about being in your flow is the ability to lose track of time because you are being so naturally creative and fruitful. When a person is in their flow, they are content, feel in control of what they are doing, and are likely to produce your best work. For many, in their working life, when they are in their flow, they are in their happy place.

Michelle was working as an intern at an architectural firm. She had studied with a guy named Jack, who she didn’t know very well, but it was convenient for her to have someone who she could hang out with, and not be alone at the start of this relatively daunting new environment.

Michelle knew she had certain capabilities, which had helped her through university. She wasn’t the most academic student, yet she had always found ways to help herself excel in projects. She also had a way with people, and she knew this helped her secure this internship, amongst other prospects that she had in her life.

Within the first few days Michelle had sussed out who was influential, who she could influence, and who she needed to impress. This was one of her greatest assets. She was also incredibly attractive, and able to flirt comfortably with almost any man. She felt extraordinarily little if a man rejected her or appeared unaffected by her advances. She simply moved onto the next person who may be more receptive to her advances.