20. Two columns.

Make two columns. On one side, make a list of things you love to do. On the other side, make a list of things you are good at.  How can you (or do you) combine aspects of both sides to create a meaningful outlet or career for yourself?   

Example:  

I love to write.  Whether I'm any good or not, I have to do it.  It gets me through.  It's my favorite way to show up in the world.
I'm good at being empathetic and encouraging people to see the brighter side. I've never had to make an effort to be this way.  It's naturally who I am.

I combine those two things and I write to inspire people.  Your turn.

I am going to be fancy schmancy and do two actual columns for mine (harder than it sounds; took a little HTML finagling):

I love to: Figure things out (e.g., the HTML for this post) Learn/teach myself Teach others Be alone with my thoughts in silence Write Create Cook and bake Travel/explore Read Do therapy (mostly) Entertain people Play board games Dance Walk/run/hike Bike Be outdoors Interact with animals Talk with others one-on-one or in small groups Make things look nice (food, my home, dressing well, etc.) Make music Attend church and think about spiritual/religious things Research things that interest me Do kind things for others

I'm good at: Caring (mostly) Listening Teaching and learning Athletic pursuits Cooking and baking Doing therapy (mostly) Art/crafts Making things look nice Talking to others Music Being content with few material things Being intentional Being thoughtful

Not at all surprisingly, I'm in school to become a clinical psychologist. Doing therapy does use a lot of these loves and talents of mine: listening, creativity, learning, teaching, interacting with others, writing. I have found that I need soul-nurturing creative outlets outside of this work, though: time outdoors, interaction with animals, spiritual pursuits, cooking, art-making. A very wise friend pointed out to me recently, when I was feeling really discouraged about school, that the beauty of my future degree is its flexibility. Who says I can't be a psychologist in private practice 3 days a week, and an awesome caterer or cheese maker or artist or teacher the other 2 or 3 or 4 days? Wow, I think I just hit a new record for number of "ors" in a given sentence.

With this post I am officially 2/3 through the 30 Layers, 30 Days self-discovery challenge!