I’m with you. I feel your pain. It seems like everyone around us is great a certain thing. I know people who can literally pick up anything and be great at it, without even practicing. I spent years dancing, multiple hours per week, and it just never worked out for me. I never became great, no matter how much I practiced at home or willed myself to do better.

Some people are musically talented, for instance: my sister and boyfriend are both phenomenal at singing and he can play a song on guitar after listening to it once. I was in chorus for all of middle school and high school and I’m still a terrible singer. A lot of my friends are great at sports and every time I attempted to participate, I would trip over my own feet. Both my brother and boyfriend are great at figuring out problems on the computer and building things, while I don’t know what the difference is between pliers and a drill. I could probably go on but I think my point is clear. Everything I’ve ever tried, I’ve never really succeeded at.

But it’s okay.

However corny this may sound, I’ve learned that it is so much better to just be a good person. After a while, it tears you down trying to be as good as everyone else or even just comparing yourself to others. Once you just do that, you realize that that is your talent. You feel lighter and I promise, it feels great to make people smile.

Also know that you aren’t alone or bad at everything necessarily. Talents come in all shapes and sizes and you can be talented at all sorts of things, not just the stereotypical hobbies everyone tries when they’re little.

Be yourself, be different.