We’d all like to think of ourselves as “talented,” right?

Sure! Largely because it means you’re good at something. And our human egos NEED is desperate for us to be good at something.
But “good” is a pretty subjective concept… I have a high school friend who, at 18, was about 5’8″, with a pretty doughy physique (not fat, but by no means fit), wore silver-rimmed glasses, and had longish, perpetually greasy hair.
In other words, the antithesis of “athletic.”
Meanwhile, he was far and away the best basketball player I have ever personally played with. He was a natural born point guard.
But as fantastic as he was, he’d never be mentioned in the same breath as even a bench-warming NBA player. And that’s no knock on his skills, he just doesn’t have the physical gifts necessary to compete at the NBA level, were skillset alone just isn’t enough.

So, what’s the point this walk down high school b-ball memory lane?

“Talent,” and it’s perceived value, is waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay overrated. And as a result, a perceived lack of talent all too often keeps us from taking on tasks and projects we could easily handle.
In other words, you don’t have to have an NBA body to be an effective basketball player. You may not have the opportunity to play at the NBA level. But then again, very few do. And you can still play a whole lot elsewhere — from semi-pro to organized leagues to pickup games at the parking on Saturday afternoons.
Similarly, you don’t have to be Kingpin marketer to effectively grow your business. You may not be ranking in as many dollars as Proctor + Gamble or Apple (firms with top-tier marketing teams), but that doesn’t mean you can’t effectively grow your local business.
Now, I got this idea thanks to a very insightful social media post made by Jason Miller, entitled…

10 Keys to Success That Don’t Require Talent

Do you know Jason Miller? If not you definitely SHOULD!
A uuuuuuuge music geek, Jason spent a decade toiling away in the music industry. But seeing the proverbial writing on the wall, Jason jumped ship ten years ago (and none too soon, as that industry has since nosed-dived an is a shell of its former self) and hitched a ride with Marketo, one of the top Marketing Automation firms going. While at Marketo, Jason applied his music biz smarts to marketing and honed his skills, building himself into a top-flight marketer.
Jason was then recited by LinkedIn and is now their head of their Content + Social Media Marketing. Along the way, Jason penned the excellent content + social media marketing guide: Welcome to the Funnel (the title is a not so subtle nod to his Rock’n’Roll heroes, Guns’n Roses, and their masterpiece debut single, Welcome to the Jungle). And he’s also the host of the LinkedIn podcast: The Sophisticated Marketer’s Podcast.
I strongly recommend you check out Jason’s book, his frequent LinkedIn posts, the AMEA marketing blog he edits, and his podcast.
Anyway, back to Jason’s inspirational quote: 10 Keys to Success That Don’t Require Talent
Now, typically I don’t go in much for inspirational quotes. Especially those dopey Quote Cards. The oh so brilliant sentiments often seem about as pointed as: Oxygen is sooooo great: It sustains life.
Gee thanks for sharing, Einstein!
But this quote was one of those rare exceptions. And while all 10 items were insightful, three, in particular, stuck out to me as incredibly relevant to marketing:

Showing Up

This is the first and most important key to any job well done. And it applies to marketing, too. Unless you’re willing to put in the time on a consistent basis (hello, the Marketing Habit anyone?), your marketing is bound to fail, and you won’t realize the business growth you’re pining for.

Work Ethic

This rides on the coattails of the point above… Because while “showing up” is half the battle, a strong, consistent focus on your marketing efforts (in other words, doing the work) is the other half of effectively growing your business.

Effort

This point is the single largest factor that distinguishes “good work” from “great work.”
In basketball, it’s called the “effort play.” When a rebound could “go either way” (AKA a “50-50 ball”), the player who wins “the toss-up” is usually the player who makes the greater effort.
In a business context, the “effort play” is when you go the “extra mile” to not only meet your client’s expectations but exceed them. And that’s the kind of social capital no amount of advertising dollars can buy.

Rule #1 for Successful Business Growth: It Doesn’t Take Talent to Succeed…

Drop by my Google+ page and share some examples of how showing up, exercising your work ethic, and making a concerted effort to go above and beyond helped you build your business.