Answer these 10 questions to discover what makes you wonderfully rare:

1. What did you love to do in junior high?

2. Why do you think you really loved that activity? (Maybe reading gave you a glimpse into others' lives, or running track freed your mind and put you in the zone.)

3. What gives you that much joy now?

4. What deeper desire do you think that activity fulfills for you?

5. If you had six months to spend any way you'd like, what would you do?

6. What were the last three things you read, watched, or saw that fascinated you? What do they have in common? (If it's a detective novel, a nature documentary, and an investigative report about campaign funds, maybe you love to delve deeply into a subject to examine it from every angle.)

7. What are three adjectives your friends would use to describe you?

8. What are three adjectives you'd use to describe yourself?

9. Name the things that most relax you, excite you, move you, and delight you.

10. What do you consider your best quality? Are you showing it off as often as you could?

Look at your answers to see whether any patterns emerge and what they might tell you about your essential self. What you do with that information is up to you: If you've lost touch with what really moved you as a kid, make room for it now. Set aside an afternoon to curl up with a stack of books or get out in the yard and work on your softball pitch. Then think about how you can incorporate what you love about your favorite activity into your life. If you spend weekends combing antiques stores, try bringing the thrill of the hunt to your workplace by volunteering to help recruit new hires. If you're a great problem solver, put that passion to use by tackling an issue in your community, like a notoriously dangerous intersection or a run-down playground. Whatever you do, you'll find that life has more meaning and joy when you put your quirk to work.

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