In a world full of endless opportunities, it's tempting to jump at the first chance that comes your way. However, the truth is that opportunity alone is not enough. The ability to seize and make the most of opportunities is what truly matters.
Building your capability, knowledge, and skills before encountering opportunities is crucial to achieving long-term success. When you have a strong foundation of abilities, you can identify opportunities that align with your strengths and have the confidence to tackle them with ease. Without the necessary abilities, opportunities may quickly turn into setbacks, leaving you feeling unprepared and overwhelmed.
So, focus on building your abilities first, and the right opportunities will naturally come your way. Remember, in today's fast-paced world, ability supersedes opportunity. Be prepared to seize it when it arrives.
Some notes that I often reflect on and revisit around this theme:
With so many avenues for digital distribution of content, perspectives abound; noise outranks the signal.
There are half-baked perspectives on what a page in a book talks about, often taken out of context. No one is reading to learn.
Everyone (including myself) is hoarding perspectives because they are marketed and packaged as essential. Everything is critical.
The vast majority are not reading books but instead checking their news feeds several times a day for articles that peddle a fear of missing out.
The cure for all the "touch-and-go" behaviour is to cultivate a growth mindset. Acknowledging that you don't know something but can learn it, given adequate time and perseverance.
Current affairs are not very useful unless they relate to people, places and things you care about. Be inquisitive about things you want to learn actively.
Read books cover-to-cover instead of summaries and reviews. As Buffet said, your income can be taxed, but your potential is yours to own. Develop it.
We can expand our capacity with employees and our abilities with specialists. The one thing we cannot obtain more of is time. Apples to oranges, yes, but true.
The only way to be strategic is to be well-informed and well-read. Ability supersedes opportunity. Be capable.
We live in a fantastic era when computers can augment our capacity to work but cannot strategize. That necessitates foresight and ability.
Thanks for reading. Follow me on Twitter (@MenonOG).