(I was grinning as I typed that quote. The Individualiser in me was *living* this story, the Input'er in me loved to read it, and the Maximiser in me just loves strengths-theory to bits.
)
So let's take stock.
If a talent calls you to a particular action, are you doomed to fulfill it, like a zombie searching for brains?
Thankfully, no. You can of course consciously control this bodily reaction, but at least with talents, in most cases, you want to align with it, or at least, do your best to create situations that align with it once you know about it. There will be cases where you can't, or probably should go against it for whatever reason, but in most cases, in terms of efficiency and effectiveness (here I go again; darn that Maximiser talent of mine
), you, just like Kyle, will want to play to your talents and draw on and hone your strengths.
But then, I feel like I'm talking to myself about strengths. In other words, I'm telling someone--Steve--who knows a lot about something things he already knows. But in this case, I probably know a
bit more about strengths-theory than Steve does, but he's actually more strengths focused, so gg Steve, you win. Now I don't want to play any more.
("gg" is gamer talk for "good game" for the uninitiated, sadly deprived non-gamers out there.).
And as an interesting aside for those reading this, one of the most little-known things about Steve's work and content is that his approach, as universal as it is, aligns with his talents completely. That's not to say that Steve hasn't aligned a lot of what he does with universal forces-he has, masterfully. But it does explain why Steve is a little better at applying a lot of what he writes about than all of us.
Sure, in some cases he has more knowledge and skill, but most of the time, he simply has more talent alignment with certain methods and processes where we simply don't. Steve became most useful to me, I think, when I started using him as an inspiring example, rather than a resource for processes and methods. I still model certain things he does and use certain ideas, but for the most part, I align everything with my talents, or boil down his methods to the core, and add my own trappings that draw on my own talents.
Before I end my rambling, I'll mention that I like that you play family board games after dinner, Steve--games are awesome, enriching things.
On a side note, consider playing some Street Fighter with Kyle. Heck, I'd play Street Fighter with Kyle (that'd be neat, heh), but alas, his competitive talent theme would probably cause him to not like me beating him (which I would probably do... relentlessly! Ok, maybe not relentlessly, but often enough to shirk that uncomfortable "I'm losing" sensation I get from not-winning. Sure, I can lose, but I prefer to win.)
You might say "Street Fighter is violent", but bah, that's like saying martial arts is violent. Sure, it has a degree of violence, but the self improvement aspects far outweigh any of that, and neither games nor martial art are about violence, anyway. (Although yes, some people who don't look beneath the graphics may just play it to see people get punched and kicked and hadouken'd. Those people should read
Playing to Win.)
Of course, you (of all people) don't need me to tell you how to raise your kids, but I honestly believe there's a very good change that Kyle's life--and the lives of many other children, and adults, too--would be better with a bit of Street Fighter in it. I particularly recommend
Street Fighter II Super Turbo HD Remix that is, conveniently, coming out in beautiful high definition, with all new redrawn art by Udon (the guys who draw the Street Fighter comics), online multiplayer on Xbox live and PSN, and re-balanced gameplay by expert-game-balancer, David Sirlin, yet with all of the goodness of the original
Street Fighter II Super Turbo. To
quote Sirlin:
Quote:
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Looks like the cat's out of the bag that you can play the game in widescreen or not, with new gameplay or not, with new music or not, and with redrawn sprites or not. Plus 8-person tournaments, true 1080p, and a way to view the hitboxes. It's all for you!
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That may sound like a bit of a Street Fighter and Sirlin plug, but if you knew how awesome Super Turbo is--especially re-balanced Super Turbo with new art and online multiplayer--you'd plug it too.
