How do You Treat Talent?
- "You're so born with it!"
- "You have a gift!"
- "It comes just so naturally to you!"
If someone had told Tiger Woods at a young age that he was born to play golf, that dude would've sucked big-time as an adult.
Prodigies are made -- not born.
The people you see on American Idol?
- They don't have natural singing abilities.
- Instead, they spent 9869584795409 hours practicing their singing chops.
The people you know as awesome mathematical geniuses?
- No natural talent.
- Just spent a tremendous more number of hours studying than the normal Joe.
No shortcuts exist to achieving greatness; it just takes strenuous hours of putting in your time to become better at what you do.
The Extremely Talented
When you tell the extremely talented that they're born with their natural gifts, what happens?
- They stop practicing.
- They stop getting better.
- Instead, they rely on "what they were born with."
Result: The Suck.
Resting on your laurels destroys your greater potential.
Keep improving.
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Posted on April 18