Focusing my Skills

In the middle of laying down our new flooring, I decided to paint one of our living room walls. Why not make an already drawn out project even larger?! Anyway, as I painted I rediscovered a forgotten skill: cutting in. I can cut in an almost perfectly straight line. It's a thing of beauty really.

The rediscovery of that one skill has significantly helped me to draw a line (forgive me!) in the sand of my job search. There are several lessons I can list out quickly...

• No skill is insignificant! Being able to cut in with paint may seem small -- I don't want to paint walls for a living. However, it demonstrates my steady hand and that is a transferable skill. My timing (of the painting) demonstrates my love of/skill for efficiency and my desire to paint shows my affinity for beauty. I'm so transferable I can't shut it off.
• Transferable skills may show up in surprising places, so it's good to be aware. Even just spending a few concentrated minutes a week thinking through tasks and errands may uncover some pleasantly surprising results.
• Though no skill is insignificant, it's possible to get mired in detail. I don't want to just add every new little skill I discover to my resume. I need a big picture focus so that I can communicate without overwhelming.

Tomorrow then, I'll focus my skills to come up with a big picture summary. In the meatime, I'm sure there's another home improvement project somewhere calling my name!