Six time NBA All-Star, twice named NBA Most Valuable Player (MVP), winner of three NBA championships with the Golden State Warriors, Wardell Stephen “Steph” Curry is called by players and analysts to be the greatest shooter in NBA history.

He is credited with revolutionizing the game of basketball by inspiring teams to regularly utilize the three-point shot. Curry’s shooting ability ranges from scoring in great volume from underneath the rim all the way to near half-court. Using an unorthodox jump shot, he is able to get the ball out of his hands in less than half a second by releasing it on the way up, adding extra arc to his shot and making it difficult to block. The shooting proficiency earned him the nickname “Baby-Faced Assassin” during his pre-NBA years and “Chef Curry” while in the NBA. He is additionally known for his ball handling and playmaking abilities, and for putting extra pressure on defences with his long range, leading the NBA in field goals made from beyond 28 feet in 2016.  He is also the fastest player in league history to make 2,000 career three-pointers, doing so in 227 fewer games than the previous record-holder, Ray Allen. A clutch scorer, he often shoots at his best in high-pressure moments, and takes game-winning shots.

Goldsberry here, is actually bringing our attention to what can be called a “Gift”, a special ability Curry was born with that sets him apart from the rest of the pack.

World famous stand up comedian and TV show host Steve Harvey says he has the gift of being able to take any piece of information and transpose it into instant comedy. Another person who acknowledges God, Harvey attributes his success to this gift God placed in him. He says that the “gift” is the thing you can do the absolute best with, using the least amount of effort. He adds that this is placed in all people by God at their birth. Harvey advises “You might be passionate about something you are not gifted for, but, if you pursue the gift, it will make you great”.

Analysing the life and work of those who can be called “extraordinary” will reveal this innate ability which I name the “gift”. It is the empowerment granted to you by your Maker to do what He wants you to. Nobody comes into this world without God having a purpose for that person’s life. Therefore we can be sure that all who are born on earth have a “gift” or “gift mix”.

The world will tell you to “follow your passion”. But a person passionate about basketball might not end up successful on court. What sets people apart as “extraordinary” in a field is not their passion but their gift. This makes identifying our gift imperative. Once this is done, developing and using this gift can bring into your life what nothing else can.

Many pursue and earn college degrees thinking, that is what will lead them to where they want to go. Many take up jobs they hate and work with people they dislike thinking these are necessary evils in the journey forward. But if you think life is more than just working eight hours a day, five or six days a week, to get the bills paid…if your aim is not to just survive but to thrive…identifying and employing your gift is inexorable.

If your aim is not to just survive but to thrive…identifying and employing your gift is inexorable – Yohan Philip

“But how”? – you might ask.

Let’s take a look at the most extraordinary life this planet has witnessed, that of Jesus Christ. He was called and gifted to be saviour, healer, deliverer, miracle worker,…for the whole of humanity. The purpose of his incarnation was to bring man into right relationship with God. When we study his life, we find sinful behaviour in man that had the potential to damage man’s relationship with God, angering him. We see him moved with compassion when he saw the needy multitudes. We see Him overjoyed when someone is healed, delivered, blessed… We see that what he does to fulfil his call, has great results. We see Him suffering on the cross, but still assured that this would just end up making Him the saviour He was called to be and being content in that as the reward.

We can gain from this glimpse into the Saviours life that emotions are indicators of our gift. What angers us might be what we are called to correct. What moves us to compassion might be where we can be most useful. We need to ask ourselves what we would love doing if there was no money or reward involved. The happiness and satisfaction we get from doing something regardless of the lack of other benefits can be a sign. As a student, I couldn’t stand my peers memorising the printed page in a text book and never once learning to apply them in life. I was sure that an educational system that was rigged thus would only make graduates who were deficient in employability. This was one factor that motivated me to take up a career instructing graduate students. I take the effort to employ experiential pedagogy and find great joy when they learn to think creatively and apply the concepts learned. Knowing that what I taught, will aid them in the furtherance of their careers and help set them apart, in their chosen fields is reward in itself for me.

Uncommon results that consistently manifest will leave you with a conviction that you are gifted in an area. This conviction might not come in other activities. Attestation from others that what you do is better than what others do in the same area, that your activity proves to be a blessing for them,…are again indicators of a gift that is well employed. Not being worn out with the idea of doing something for a lifetime can also be a sign. The ability to keep on at what you are doing, even when all looks bleak can be a sign that you are doing what you are gifted for.

The employment of gifts ensures easier and surer achievement of purpose and will set you among the “extraordinary”. Take some time to think it through so that you can know what your gift is.

To quote Benjamin Franklin “Hide not your talents, they for use were made, What’s a sundial in the shade?”

From the book “The Pursuit of Extraordinary” by YOHAN PHILIP