A WALK IN THE PARK Learning the truth about yourself

In my Sunday school class, we recently watched a video entitled, “The Truth about You, Your Secret to Success.”

Watching the video, presented by “best-selling author” and motivational speaker Marcus Buckingham, coincided with the beginning of a new year when so many of us resolve to become “better” in some way, but that might have been a coincidence. This man’s presentation builds upon the Biblically-based idea that we talked about many other times; and that is that we are all created with different strengths and abilities. Learning to use these God given talents in the way they were intended will enhance our lives and be beneficial to those around us.

This sounds simple enough but, according to Buckingham, many of us need help truly understanding ourselves and may be living less fulfilled lives because we don’t have it entirely figured out. Apparently, “Who am I and what am I doing here?” is still the big question.

This all got me thinking about a conversation I had a couple of years ago with mydad. I sat down beside him on the couch and took out a pen and note pad. At that point we knew that he had only a short time to live and I wanted to get any “words of wisdom” that I could from this let-common-sense-prevail kind of man. Although his body was rugged and tired from 83 years of living, hard work and fighting two life-threatening conditions, he still had a sharp mind and plenty of wit. And, he still loved to visit.

“What advice would you give to people about life?” I asked him.

He talked for a while and I scribbled quickly while I listened. Then he paused, as though he were summing up all he had just said.

“People really ought to be true to themselves,” he stated slowly, and paused again before continuing. “Even then, it’s not that easy to figure out who you are.”

I remember being a little surprised at the time by these words. In my mind, my dad had lived a very successful life, and if he ever struggled with knowing “who he was,” I hadn’t perceived it. I later wished that I would have asked him exactly how to “be true to yourself,” but I didn’t thinkof it at the moment. Maybe I thought I should know that by now.

Marcus Buckingham assumes that many of us could use some help discovering our “true selves.” His ambition is to help us do that and, in the process, become better at being who we were meant to be.

I don’t read a lot of selfhelp books or listen to a lot of motivational speakers, but I have taken a few quizzes over the years to identify personality traits and inventory my strengths and interests. One twist Buckingham presents to anything I have heard before is that our “strengths” are not necessarily the things we are good at, but the things that we enjoy that make us feel energized and strong.

So often we get pegged by ourselves or others for roles that involve doing what “we are good at,” but we may be missing what we were truly designed to be, he says. To begin to determine the difference and connect with our “true selves,” Buckingham suggests keeping a daily log of things we do and list the tasks or activities in either the “love” category or the “loathe” category. This way, we begin to see what truly makes us feel energized and successful and what leaves us feeling tired and drained.

For additional assistance in “discovering and prioritizing” your own strengths,the author offers a free questionnaire on the stronglifetest.com Web site.

I plan to investigate the Web site and complete the questionnaire. How could it hurt to gain a little insight and get to know myself a little better? I wouldn’tmind having a clearer idea of exactly who I am and just where I fit into the big jigsaw puzzle called life. I think that was what my dad was talking about.

Annette Rowe is a freelance writer from rural Gentry and a speech-language pathologist at Siloam Springs High School. She may be reached by e-mail at awalkinthepark50 @ yahoo.com.