I am once again participating in Sometimes Sweet’s weekly journal prompts, and this week the prompt is:

Quite simply, what are you good at? All of us have particular strengths- what are yours? This week, talk about these talents, big or small. Ideas: discuss how you use these things in your daily life or job, how you discovered a knack for this or that, perhaps even touch on whether or not you are passionate about the things you’re good at.

One of the reasons I dislike job interviews is that you are generally always asked what your strengths are. Ask me what my faults are, and I can rattle them off, but my strengths? Please, please, please ask me something else. It isn’t that I’m extremely humble, or secretly seeking praise or otherwise, I just have a hard time stating what I’m good at because I feel that I’m constantly a work in progress and I don’t really feel that I excel at anything. I have many things that I enjoy doing, I just don’t feel they are as good as they could be, so maybe my problem is high expectations. For the sake of making me feel less uncomfortable, why don’t I talk about things I’m okay at?

I’m a fairly decent cook, but tend to be better when it comes to desserts. I have kitchen failures (caramel never seems to turn out right for me), but overall I’ve always been pretty consistent when it comes to breads and cakes and other yummy treats. I tend to stick to recipes, but I do like to add my own touch, which thankfully works out well more often than not. If I had more time I would bake, but, I wouldn’t say I’m a passionate cook. I’d just as soon order out or go to a yummy bakery all the time if I could. There is something relaxing and almost therapeutic, though, about the baking process.

I’m told that I’m decent when it comes to photography, and while I still feel I have much to learn, it’s something I just enjoy doing. I’ve taken some really good photos over the years, but most of the time I’m taking pictures without much thought other than to quickly capture the moment. If I had more time, I’d put more effort into it, but lately I’m lucky if I have a few minutes to quickly snap a few shots of the kids before our toddler realizes I have the camera and doesn’t want to be in the picture, but wants to play with the camera himself. I do have plans to make more time this summer to photograph something other than the kids, even if they are adorable.

While most people would look at my desk and scoff at the idea that I could possibly be organized in any way, I’m actually pretty good at research and planning. I kind of love it. When planning our wedding, I managed to find some great options that kept us in our very low budget, but still made for a fantastic day. When it was time for our honeymoon road trip, we both got involved in the planning, and made a dorky itinerary to go along with it (which was my favorite part of the planning process). We calculated and planned everything, which for me means far less stress. We knew how long it would take to drive from one place to the next, and calculated when we needed to wake up and be on the road each day. Pure bliss for me – I like to know what’s going on. I’m also the one who researches large purchases for our home. I want to know we’re getting a good deal and the most for our money so I try to do as much research as possible.

While research and planning can be useful in my job (which is really not interesting to write about), I find that my “talents” really only get use in my personal life. Now if only I could find a job that I actually feel passionate about. It makes me wonder just how many people are at jobs where their true talents are completely wasted. Really, though, that’s a topic for another day.