11 Fun Ways to Reveal the Expertise You’ve Been Overlooking
Most experts underestimate themselves.
They say things like:
“I was just doing my job.”
“It’s nothing special.”
“Why would anyone pay for this?”
Here’s the truth:
The knowledge that feels routine to you is priceless to someone else.
The challenge is seeing your own expertise clearly.
That’s where a few playful, solo exercises can help.
Think of them as icebreakers — but instead of meeting someone else, you’re meeting yourself.
Your skills. Your stories. Your hidden superpowers.
And once you see them, you can turn them into small, valuable services on Helios — and start earning from what you already know.
1. The “Ask Me About…” List
Activity:
Write down 10 things you’d be comfortable finishing these sentences with:
- “People always ask me about…”
- “If you’re stuck on ___, I can help.”
Why it works:
It surfaces expertise that feels obvious to you but is valuable to others.
Each one can become a micro-service:
Ask me about fixture setup
Ask me about optimizing feeds and speeds
2. The 3-Minute Victory Stories
Activity:
Set a timer for three minutes. Write short stories about moments you:
- Solved a tough problem
- Saved time, money, or material
- Helped a teammate “get it”
Repeat this three times.
Why it works:
Each story is proof of your expertise in action.
These micro-stories reveal superpowers that can easily turn into small mentorship services:
I can help shops avoid X, just like I did here.
If you solved it once, you can help someone else solve it faster.
3. The Love–Hate Inventory
Activity:
Draw two columns:
Love Doing → tasks that energize you
Hate Doing → tasks that drain you
Why it works:
Build services from the “Love Doing” side.
This keeps Helios from feeling like “just another job” and ensures you create work that sustains passion, not burnout.
Because the best work is the work you enjoy doing most.
4. The $1,000 Question
Activity:
Ask yourself:
- “If a shop paid me $1,000 for one hour, what would I deliver with total confidence?”
Then shrink it: - “If they paid $100 for 30 minutes, what could I deliver?”
Why it works:
It reframes your value.
You’ll quickly see how much knowledge you already carry that shops would gladly pay for — once it’s packaged clearly.
5. Sticky Note Services
Materials:
Six sticky notes in three colors.
Color 1 (Skills): Write six skills you use often.
Color 2 (Problems): Write six shop problems you’ve solved.
Color 3 (Services): Match one skill + one problem to create a draft service.
Example:
Skill: CNC programming
Problem: Downtime from bad G-code
Service: Quick G-code Debug Review (30 min)
Why it works:
It gamifies service creation.
You literally see how your skills connect to real shop needs — how everyday know-how turns into sellable, repeatable services.
6. The Future Self Letter
Activity:
Write a one-page letter from “You, three years from now,” describing:
- The services you’re known for on Helios
- The people or shops you’ve helped
- How it feels to get paid for sharing what you know
Why it works:
It shifts your mindset from “I don’t know what I can offer” to “I can already see myself doing this.”
7. The “Teach It Back” Test
Activity:
Pick something you do automatically — a setup, a process, or a troubleshooting habit.
Now pretend you’re teaching it to a new apprentice or coworker.
Write (or record) a simple 3-step version of how you’d explain it.
Why it works:
When you teach something, you reveal the frameworks hidden inside your instincts.
Those frameworks are gold — they can become guides, templates, or short Helios services like:
“Teach Your Team My 3-Step Quick-Change Setup Method.”
8. The Compliment Replay
Activity:
Scroll through your texts, messages, or old emails.
Find times someone thanked you, praised your help, or said “You’re the best at…”
List the themes you notice.
Why it works:
We often dismiss compliments, but they show how others already see our strengths.
Each one is a mirror reflecting expertise you might not value enough — and a hint toward the services people would happily pay for.
9. The “Fix-It Flashback”
Activity:
Think of five moments in your career when something went wrong — equipment failed, timelines slipped, chaos hit.
Now ask: What did I do that fixed it?
Why it works:
Crisis brings out hidden expertise.
The creative, calm, or technical moves you made under pressure show how you create real value when it matters most.
Each of these could become a “crisis-to-clarity” style service (e.g., Emergency Line Setup Audit or 30-Minute Downtime Prevention Review).
10. The “If I Had a Clone” List
Activity:
Imagine you had a clone for one week.
What would you delegate to them — and what would you keep for yourself because you enjoy it or do it best?
Why it works:
This playful thought experiment surfaces your most energizing and differentiating skills.
The tasks you’d never hand off often point to your strongest and most fulfilling service opportunities.
11. The “Museum of Me”
Activity:
Gather a few physical or digital artifacts from your work: project photos, drawings, parts you built, notes you’ve kept, even thank-you emails.
Lay them out and look at them like an exhibit.
Ask yourself: What stories do these tell about how I think, solve, and create?
Why it works:
Seeing your career visually helps you spot recurring patterns — your signature ways of creating value.
Those patterns can become your “method,” your “system,” or your branded Helios service.
From Reflection to Action
These 11 exercises aren’t just games.
They’re tools to help you:
- See your expertise more clearly
- Break it down into smaller, bookable services
- Recognize the real value of what you already know
Because the world of end-to-end manufacturing — from idea and design to prototyping, engineering, and production — doesn’t just need more machines.
It needs more knowledge.
More wisdom.
More experts ready to share what they know.
Your Next Step
Play with these exercises.
Write down your answers.
Then pick just one service to start with.
It doesn’t need to be perfect.
It doesn’t need to be big.
It just needs to be yours.
Helios makes it simple to list your service, connect with shops, and get paid for your expertise.