How to Find Your Unique Gifts

Have you ever wondered what your unique gifts are? You’re not alone.

This is a common question when it comes to living our purpose.

Gifts are the aspects of yourself that you have and can contribute to the world.

Yes, that can include talents.

But talent can be a tricky subject.

Sometimes our talents aren’t necessarily indicative of our purpose work, the way we’re meant to contribute.

For example, I have a lot of talent when it comes to design, but being a designer isn’t my purpose. It’s a passion, something I’m naturally skilled at and enjoy. Still, I spent a majority of my 20s feeling unfulfilled while working at incredible design firms on next-level projects for major companies and nonprofits. That said, when I use this talent and pair it with my gifts, then I’m living true to my purpose.

Gifts are what we give to the world and those around us.

Gifts are our unique contribution and don’t hinge on talent or skill.

Gifts are the things people thank us for, which can be as “simple” as our presence and the energy we bring, or what we create in our business that has an impact.

Gifts are the unique aspects of ourselves that make us who we are and, often, they’re parts that we repress and deny because we think we need to hide them to “fit in,” get love, or stay safe.

For example, one of my gifts is how differently I see the world.

Throughout my childhood and into my 20s, this aspect of self became a shadow because I deemed them unloveable and wrong due to the pain and shame I experienced. I hid this part of myself away and tried to think, be, and act like everyone else to gain acceptance and belonging.

Then I discovered blogging. And I started blogging anonymously for a handful of years, finding my voice, building community with other like-minded individuals, and slowly owning and outing this part that I’d hidden away.

One day in 2009, I got brave.

I put up a blog under my real name at stepheniezamora.com, sharing my thoughts about life and the world and all the random things in between. I wrote quietly for many months before I worked up the courage to post a link on Facebook. I was terrified to share my perspective and thoughts, sure I’d be shamed, judged, and ostracized from what little communities I had.

But something else happened.

People resonated.

People loved what I wrote.

People’s perspectives shifted as a result.

People thanked me for “sharing my view of the world.”

Our gifts are as unique as we are, and they’re often the things we believe make us weird, damaged, broken, or unlovable.

But in order to live our purpose and give our gifts, we have to be willing to embrace all of who we are, showing up fully aligned and fully expressed.

That’s terrifying and uncomfortable at times, I know.

It can also lead to losses—relationships, careers, places we call home, and communities—as we step more fully into who we’re here to be and everything that’s not aligned falls away. But I can say from experience, it’s beyond worth it.

There’s nothing as fulfilling as being who you are and knowing that it’s a vital and needed act of contribution to the world.

Ready to live your purpose?

Book a consultation with me today, or grab my book:

Thread the Storyline: Uncover the Purpose of Your Path