Awakening Talent: Finding the spark within
- Mascha Wolf
- Oct 3
- 2 min read
More often than not, talent doesn’t awaken at the office.
Recently, I was thrown off by yet another change of direction in a client project. Frustrated and stuck, I closed my laptop and went for a walk in the woods. Among the trees, my tension settled and my thoughts started to wander. By the time I came back, pages of fresh ideas spilled out of me - solutions and new angles I couldn’t see before. All of a sudden, I was full of energy again.
It struck me: sometimes the only way to stir what’s within is to step away, breathe, and awaken.
The science of awakening
We’ve all felt it, but research proves it: walking boosts creativity.
A Stanford study found walking increases creative output by up to 60%.
Free, unstructured movement helps us generate more original ideas.
So why do we still spend so much time in offices, waiting for inspiration to strike? Shouldn’t we rather invest more of our time and energy in creating the right conditions for the creative spark allowing our talent(s) to awaken?
We often think of talent as something we already know: whether it’s our skills, our qualifications, our “strong suits.” Awakening talent is less about what’s on your CV and more about what happens when you:
Step out of routine and allow curiosity to take the lead
Give yourself (or your people) time and space to think differently
Notice the conditions that spark energy, creativity, and new ideas
This is the spark stage - the beginning of every growth journey. Without it, we risk staying stuck in autopilot, never discovering what else we might be capable of.
What organizations can do
Companies play a huge role in awakening talent:
Make space → walking meetings, reflection time, pauses
Reward curiosity → celebrate experiments, not just results
Equip managers → train leaders to unlock potential, not just to track KPIs
Model the journey → when leaders share their rediscovery, they give others permission too
As McKinsey put it: “Reimagining people development means moving from a fixed view of talent toward unleashing potential.”
Your action to awaken your Talent this week
Ask yourself:
When do I feel most alive, energized, curious?
What rituals (a walk, a conversation, a journal) help ideas flow?
Where in my current work is untapped potential waiting to surface?
Give yourself 20 minutes. No phone. Just walk. Notice what surfaces.
What part of your talent is waiting to be awakened? What would happen if I gave it space to breathe?
The journey ahead
Talent isn’t just discovered. It’s awakened, nurtured, and expressed. The real magic happens when we allow the quiet voice inside us to speak, and then commit to bringing it to life.
This month we began with awakening. Next, we’ll explore how to nurture talent once sparked - and finally, how to express it in ways that create real impact.
Until then: notice where your spark shows up. That’s your talent, asking to be awakened.
Further readings:
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