My husband Lee and I were traveling north on Interstate 85, returning home from a visit to his mother, who’s lived in a nursing home for seven years. These trips give us time to talk, away from the hectic pace of our typical work week.

We had just passed a truck pulling a boat with a large outboard motor on the back. My thoughts drifted back 25 years to the boat Lee’s parents used to own. They loved to take it out on nearby Buggs Island Lake to fish for crappies, whenever they could get away from the country store they owned and operated.

The motor on their boat was much smaller than the one on the boat we’d passed, but it still had to be maintained. I wondered who had taken care of that, so I asked Lee if that was his father's job.

His laugh gave me my answer, but then he added, “My dad? He didn’t know how to do anything mechanical. Neither did my mother.”

It turns out that, from the time he was a teenager, Lee had maintained all the equipment and vehicles that his parents owned…their tractor, riding lawn mower, car, truck, and outboard motor. If anything broke, they looked to him to fix it.

And with good reason.

Ever since he was a small child, Lee loved taking things apart and figuring out how to put them back together. To this day, there is no tool, engine, electrical device or household appliance that intimidates him.

Lee likes to say he has a “knack” for fixing things. I call it GENIUS because I am often lost when faced with mechanical or technical challenges.

I’ve been married to Lee for 29 years, and I’m still amazed at his ability to tackle - with total confidence - anything that breaks. He takes this extraordinary ability for granted and doesn’t understand why others (like me) find anything with a motor or moving parts so mysterious and daunting.

The truth is, I don’t want to do the work to develop the skills he has – and I doubt I could come even close if I spent the rest of my life trying.

I’m much more fascinated by people and how they work. And that’s a good thing, considering the business I’m in. I've learned to play to my strengths. It's much more rewarding and fun.

What is it that comes easily to you AND you love to do? And when people see you do it, they’re amazed? 

Take time to think about what your special “knack” is. Because the world needs it. And your life will be rich and fulfilling when you get to do it a lot.

Leave a comment below sharing what your unique genius is and how you use it in your life.