Where Can You Be Generous?

A Different Way to Look at Your “Unique Value Contribution”

In an interview with Chase Jarvis, Seth Godin gave me a lot of food for thought when he suggested that we all ourselves this question:

“Where are you being generous – completely selfless and generous – so that an organization or person is changed for the better? Can you do that again and again and again?” (44m 10s)

The question is big, and it is very relevant for career coaching and business development. Even without the – perhaps too high – standard of being “completely selfless”, it gives a beautiful angle to the classic and essential question of: “How can you contribute value?”

For example, with a career-coaching client we might explore the question:
“What skills do you already have, or can you acquire, that are valuable to a potential employer?”

Or, when working with a business owner we might ask:
“How does your service, or your product, make a true difference in people’s lives?”
“What niche can you develop, where you can more easily make a bigger difference, and add more value, than anybody else could?”

These more typical coaching questions easily translate into “where can you be generous”, as in:
“Where can you most effectively and genuinely (and therefore sustainably) give more than anybody expects?”
“What strengths (skills, expertise, passion, resources) do you have that set you apart by allowing you to contribute more than others can?”

Here is the full-length interview, worth listening to anyway.

by Ursina Teuscher (PhD), at Teuscher Decision Coaching, Portland OR