Slingshot Weekly (6/11/25) | You Have Skills, Now Use Them

There’s something funny that happens when something comes naturally to us. We assume it can’t be that valuable. We downplay it, brush it off, wave it away.

We often say:

• “That was easy.”
• “It wasn’t a big deal.”
• “That’s just who I am.”

But what if the very thing you think doesn’t count is the thing that makes you rare?

What if the skill that lives in your bones - the one that doesn’t require effort or explanation - is the exact thing someone else is searching for in a teammate, a coworker, a leader?

We’re taught to only celebrate what’s earned through difficulty, what’s been tested, validated, measured. But there’s a quieter kind of excellence that doesn’t need a trophy - it just needs to be noticed.

Maybe you’re the person who always makes sure everyone’s included. Maybe you’re the first to help when no one else steps up. Maybe you’re the one who remembers details, who reads the room, who brings steady energy when things get messy. Maybe you’ve discounted that gift because it didn’t look impressive on paper.

But let us say this plainly: ease is not the enemy of value. Just because it’s easy for you doesn’t mean it’s easy for others. Just because it’s natural doesn’t mean it’s not powerful.

In our work, we’ve seen this truth surface again and again. Young people who say “I don’t really have a skill” go on to describe stories of conflict resolution, of organizing their family’s schedule, of helping their friends get unstuck, of being a calm voice when things fell apart.

We want you to pause this week and take an honest inventory.

• What do people thank you for, even when you don’t think you did anything special?
• What habits, instincts, or ways of thinking feel so second-nature that you’ve stopped seeing them?
• What if those small moments - the ones you almost forgot - were actually the loudest proof of who you are and what you offer?

Write them down. Revisit them. Speak them out loud if you need to. The work you do without trying might be the truest version of your unique contribution.

Don’t miss it just because it doesn’t make noise. The world needs more people who are finally ready to own what they’ve always had.