Are Your Strengths Being Utilized?

Most talented writers can write
a half-decent story
in almost any genre
(subset of an industry).

Half-decent, however,
isn’t good enough
in a crowded market
(and almost all markets
are crowded).

We need to create amazing
(but that doesn’t mean perfect)
products,
products that will wow
customers.

It is easier to do that
if we utilize our specific gifts.

One of my gifts as a writer
(a product developer)
is world building.
I’m awesome at it.

But I had a great relationship
with a huge New York publisher
who wanted me to write contemporary romance
(a subset of the industry).
The readers (customers) in that subgenre
don’t value world building.
It doesn’t excite them.
They prefer it be minimized.

I moved to a subgenre
that DID value world building.
My sales went from next to nothing
to bestseller list levels.

That’s what happens
when our strengths
are being utilized.

Are you in a position or industry
where your strengths are valued
and utilized?