Ability is the key to being, creating, producing, and earning. It drives everything we do. How do we find out what our abilities are? How do we add to them and hone them? How do we deal with lack, decline or complete loss of ability?
Innate Abilities
Innate abilities are literally “abilities we are born with”. They also include basic abilities that we develop over time without consciously trying. Examples of abilities that are innate to most people are breathing, seeing, hearing, smelling, tasting, hearing, eating, digesting, and eventually walking and talking.
How about talents, like artistic or athletic predisposition or intellectual giftedness? Are they innate or acquired? If a person chooses not to take advantage of and develop a certain talent, the answer may be irrelevant.
Acquired Abilities
Acquired abilities are the ones many of us rely on to earn money. One may not have a special predisposition or talent for plumbing or accounting, but it is something that appeals to them, or they choose it because it can provide a living wage. There is essentially no limit to how many different abilities we can acquire (other than our time on earth and some hindrances described below).
Some people change what they do to earn money every few years and develop additional abilities to pursue a variety of hobbies, others are perfectly happy to work in the same profession all their lives and may only have a couple of leisure activities they pursue. The beauty is in the choice, and with instant access to any information nowadays, it is easier than ever to learn new skills, as long as one has the drive and discipline to do it.
Lacking Abilities
The lack of an ability maybe be apparent at birth or soon thereafter. Examples are vision or hearing impairments, inability to speak, or other disabilities present at birth. The lack of certain abilities may not become apparent until much later in life. Some people may struggle heavily with numbers or other logical concepts all their lives. Others may have difficulties with written communication. A third group may find personal interaction with other people extremely challenging.
While it is often possible to improve some of those skills, it may not be feasible to reach proficiency level. In that case, I would encourage a person to explore what types of work require less of those skills and more of their strongest abilities. I believe it is important to improve abilities as much as possible while being realistic about one’s limitations.
Lost Abilities
How do we deal with abilities we lose, either instantly, for example through an accident, or gradually due to a slow illness or the normal aging process?
Instant loss of ability may include injuries such as paralysis, accidental loss of eyesight or hearing, a brain injury that may affect many functions, or something as small as the loss of a finger.
Gradual loss of ability may include dementia, slow loss of hearing or eyesight, multiple sclerosis, and other illnesses.
The main factors to overcoming loss of ability are our own adaptability and willingness to work around it and the support system we have available, may that be family, friends, or a supportive employer. Every person on earth has some ability that makes them special and valuable. The tricky thing is to find them, further them, and use them to our advantage.