Finding what you are remarkable at

Many Americans are scrambling this week to pay their taxes before the April 15 deadline. It's a stressful time for many of us. Do we really need the added stress? Add to that the stresses of work and it's almost easy to see why Americans take so many anti-depressants. Our lives become a pressure cooker balancing all the responsibilities of home, work, and family.

Sometimes the stress from work comes from being in the wrong place. We are working long hours at jobs we hate to make money to pay bills for things we buy to take our minds off the work we hate. Cool, huh? How about the following statistics from my friend Dan Miller's book 48 Days to the Work You Love:

• 70% of American workers experience stress-related illnesses.
• 34% think they will burn out on the job in the next 2 years.
• The Los Angeles Times reports that there is a 33% increase in heart attacks on Monday mornings.
• According to the national Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, more people die at nine o'clock Monday morning than any other time of day or any other day of the week.
• Entrepreneur magazine adds that there is a 25% increase in work-related injuries on Mondays.
• Male suicides are highest on Sunday nights, with men realizing that their careers—and possibly their finances as well—are not where they want them.

In talking to my friend and mentor Chuck Bowen about people finding that niche that fits one best, he encourages us to find that thing that we're remarkable at, not just able to do. You and I can do many things well, but what are you remarkable at? Find this out, and you will be on your way to finding work you love.

One example I have been seeing of this in action is on the show Undercover Boss. We have really enjoyed the show. I stand amazed at how some folks, doing work I wouldn't want to do, do so with so much passion and energy that they completely blow the mind of the CEO. They are so exciting to watch! That's how I approach my work, and want to see others approach theirs as well.