What Am I Actually Good At?
As a teenager, I believed I was good at nothing. So I sat down and listed my strengths — written while trying to recover the confidence that recent events had worn down.
What am I actually good at? I listed out my strengths.
In my teens, there was a time when I believed I was good at nothing.
I certainly do not want to go back to my teens or early twenties.
Because from my teenage years until now, I have given each day my best, and I have no regrets at all.
And the reason I give each day my best now is probably the same: so that my future self will have nothing to regret.
For that reason — though these capabilities are still small —
on the principle that knowing yourself and knowing your enemy wins every battle, I wrote down my current capabilities.
[1. Business and professional capability]
• Monetization: within about five months of graduating university, generated operating profit through sales work and my own business.
• Full-stack architect and execution: the one-person developer capability to carry an idea from planning through AI system design, backend and frontend implementation, and final deployment, completing it all with my own hands.
• Business perspective: software development skills plus a business administration lens, and one year of immersion in KICPA (Korean CPA) study.
[2. Intellectual capability]
• Strong academic record: final CSAT grade combination of 1-2-1-1-2. The perfect score in CSAT World History is something I am personally quite proud of. I entered university through the essay examination track.
• Depth and speed in reading: the ability to quickly read between the lines for the core of a text. The tenacity to self-teach all the way to the end.
• Self-expression: solid writing has been my hobby and, I would claim, my greatest ability since school days.
[3. Physique and athleticism]
• Hardware: 179cm tall, with proportions I would call decent.
• A sturdy body and appearance: built a solid frame in university through weight training — bench press, overhead press, dips.
• Athletic feel: golf skills that control a 7-iron carry of 140m (150m total) with precision and stay reliably under 100 strokes on the course. I taught myself by following my father, a construction man, out to play. This is one of the biggest reasons I am considering the move to America.
• A ready laugh and good cheer: perhaps this belongs to social skills. I strike up conversation first, even with someone I have just met. In a crowded room, I am not afraid to raise my hand first, ask questions, and present.
[4. Artistic side]
• Vocal timbre: dramatic tenor.
• Stable pitch (strength in the low-mid range, with a stable top around A4 to B4).
• Instruments: I play acoustic guitar and can comfortably sing John Legend’s “All of Me” or Jason Mraz pop at the same time.
[5. Mindset and lifestyle]
• Metacognition: choosing songs that suit my timbre, businesses that favor my strengths.
• Drive: I know how to endure the solitude of the building process. I have the mentality to put a product on the market and prove it with numbers.
Though I listed only a few, considerable strengths came into view.
“Written while trying to recover the confidence that recent events had worn down.”
Once it was on paper, I could see the possibilities that the 26-year-old me can strengthen,
and I became convinced that beyond the current life of headlong challenges,
an even more rewarding life is possible in the future.
Next time I will post my weaknesses as well.
(A preview of the weaknesses)
• Deprioritizing daily life: when I focus on work or a project, basic life management — housework, laundry, cleaning — falls behind.
• Excessive immersion and broken balance: once I go deep, I tend to cling on without washing or sleeping. For my health and long-term performance, this is what I must watch and guard against most.
• Energy drain in relationships: I treat people too well. It may be a positive trait, but I need to draw appropriate lines and balance my relationships so that others don’t take me lightly and my own energy isn’t depleted.