Think of that disengaged employee in the office. He may be talented at what he does, but you can tell he doesn’t take much pleasure from coming into work every day. Sir Ken Robinson, the keynote speaker for Monday’s Opening General Session, would say that that employee isn’t in his element because he doesn’t have passion for what he’s doing.
During his address, Robinson stressed that people should find what they’re passionate about—both in work and in life—for a shot at success and happiness. “What really makes you successful at what you do is passion,” he said. “A strong passion with moderate talent will get you much further than moderate passion and tremendous talent.”
Many people don’t think they have much talent and don’t get much pleasure from the work they do, Robinson explained. But others love what they do and can’t imagine doing anything else. The key is to identify the talents that you have. “We all have deep talents, but it’s often the case that we don’t discover them,” he said. “There’s a crisis connected to the fact that people haven’t found passion in their lives.”
To unlock this potential, Robinson said we have to go “digging” for our talents and stop ignoring what appeals to us. “We spend a lot of time suppressing and ignoring the things we have an interest in doing,” he said. Instead we must embrace what we’re good at and what piques our interest. “This combination of passion and talent is what it means by being in your element.”
Robinson fears that happiness is at stake for those who have not found their element. He cited the fact that by 2020 the second largest cause of mortality worldwide is predicted to be depression. “Happiness is not a material state at all; it’s a spiritual state,” he said. “When you’re happy, your spirits can be rip-roaring.”
Finding your element is a two-way journey, Robinson explained. It’s both inward and outward. That journey entails knowing about yourself and discovering more about the world around you. In quoting the Dalai Lama, Robinson said “To be born at all is a miracle, so what are you going to do with your life?”
Once you create the conditions to grow and nurture that talent, “we all can benefit,” Robinson said.