Natural gift skill you wish you had, that you have already

[shootingstar]

I don't have mechanical skills and I really know this, when I watch dearie solve malfunction, non-operational piece of equipment or gizmo and the natural problem-solving process he goes through when there's no manual around.

I also know my geo-spatial skill is crappy. Heck if I get off at a subway stop that I haven't used before, it takes me awhile to figure out my location to new intersections, etc. Whereas he seems to naturally follow along all sorts of routes after some map-reading...and this is before days of GPS portable aids (and I'm not talking about just a compass. ).

However I know that I have refined technical skill since I've had to implement for several employers, computerization across multiple dept. functions and train others in a detailed way, deal with software problems, design software reports, etc. This skill most definitely was acquired in my late 20's onward and I had no idea I had this skill in me. Related to technical and abit of art skills is sewing.. excellent tailoring is technical but creating a piece of clothing with the right colour, texture and cut on a person, is also abit of artistic....you have to be able to envision when looking at a bolt of fabric. I used to get so inspired going to fabric stores. It is like going into an art supply store with all the different paints, etc.

I know that my artistic side in sewing is helpful because my mother is superior in tailoring and good at basic pattern drafting (she is self taught. I'm hopeless at pattern drafting), but she really chooses such boring colours and textures for others. Therefore she is more technically bent...and actually this shows up when she does mathematical calculations in her head while my father patiently watches her and waits for her to spit out the answer. My father is naturally more artistic --likes Chinese opera, Chinese calligraphy, etc.

[emily_in_nc]

I would most love to be able to sing and dance beautifully, I think.

My skills are more in the writing and technical realms. I am also very organized. These skills served me well in my career as a software engineer, but I would love to have more performance-related skills.

Better social skills would be nice as well!

[Koronin]

I'm totally tone def, can't draw worth anything, and as much as I love sports, I'm not very good at it. Unless you count archery as a sport as I am good with a bow and arrows. Otherwise I'm much better with macanical and electronic things and can fairly easily read diagrams and blueprints for cars or houses.

[malkin]

Oh, I'd love to sing like Judy Collins and dance like...well, like a person who knew the difference between left and right at least. Drawing would be fun too.
I might wish to play the piano, but then all the fun I'm having learning right now would go away, wouldn't it?

It was a fine stroke of luck that I landed in a profession and a position that uses many of my strengths: communication, language, play and recognizing progress in very tiny increments. I still get to sing and dance and make art and music but I don't have to demonstrate any particular competence at those things.


edit: Brewer says that while I'm at it I might as well wish to sing like Julie Andrews and dance like Cyd Charisse.

[hirakukibou]

I am pretty artistic, except I can't draw myself out of a box. I am a pretty good writer and have a good singing voice. I do wish I could read music better, but that would take more work than I am willing to put in right now.

[Owlie]

I wish I had some musical, artistic and writing ability. I can write for my field, but I used to be much more adept at expressing myself with words. Now that I think about it, it happened in college when I didn't have to write for anyone outside my field and didn't have time to read for pleasure.

My sister got all of those. She also got the athletic ability.

[tulip]

I am very good at languages, and can speak my own and one other fluently, and get by pretty well with others given just a bit of study. Music also comes relatively easily but I don't do it very often any more.

I'm shy and not very outgoing and wish I was more comfortable in social situations. Funny, when I'm speaking a language other than my own, I'm much more comfortable being social.