Talent and people’s perspective and relationship to it is an interesting thing. See if you can agree with me that having talent at something is a gift that allows you to be naturally pre-disposed to doing better than others at a task.

Good example of this is a friend who picks up a pencil and can draw something pretty well or a buddy at work who picks-up playing drums and naturally has good rhythm and timing. You can say that without trying too hard, these people had a leg up on the task out of thin air. It was a gift that could be practiced and improved upon to get better, but that raw ability was in the person’s DNA.

When I was stydying, obsessing and practicing the guitar all the way through my college years, I never considered myself to have any more talent at playing the instrument than anyone else that I met. I felt that I became good at playing the guitar because I practiced it a lot.

One of my college professors disagreed with me, however. He said that no matter how much he practiced he was never able to achieve his dream and play in the NFL. He felt he did not have enough talent in football, although he loved the game and had a lot of passion for it. That conversation began changing my perspective a little.

So, should someone give up a pursuing something because they feel or think that they might have little talent for it? Definitely not.

Truth is that if you have a strong interest in trying something this is very often your talent nudging you to do it. You really never know how talented you might be at anything until you try. They say the more expensive place on earth is the cemetery because unfulfilled inventions, dreams and things that could make life for us humans better never had a chance to be materialized.

Point to remember. Even if you are very talented at something you have to put in the work. This is a sticky point for many talented folks. Because things might come “easier” to them due to various talents they often do not try hard. I have seen this happen with many guitar playing friends of mine who were ridiculously talented but just kind of sat around and settled. They got what they wanted easily and they never knew how to push for super results where real work was needed.

One thing I’d also lke to stress is a quote I recently read from NFL veteran and Superbowl XVLI Champion, Steve Weatherford.

“Talent will always lose to someone who’s willing to work.”

You hear him? Steve believes that strong work ethic will outperform eventually someone with talent. Talent will not improve by itself unles you put in more work. You can’t only rely on it. If you have a talented person rely soley at their birth given talent, the hard working person with lesser talent will eventually rise and surpass him or her. I agree with this to be true. This is a very motivating factor for anyone who wants to become better at something whether it is an instrument or anything else. In a nutshell, the success relies on you.

And, if it is you, then this is good news. You can always control your output, work and dedication.

I think it also important to be straight on this and realize that there are sometimes misalignments. If you really have to work incredibly hard to shoot one hoop out of 10 and you are looking to surpass someone who is just the right height and has a lot of talent that can take him as far as the NBA – you might be in the wrong game.

Remember that because you like something you do not have to become a master at it. Your talent might lie somewhere else. There is plenty of joy just enjoying doing something because you like it and not having the stress of becoming amazing at it. Become truly great at where your talents lie and simply enjoy the rest. It is impossible to conquer everything.

I strongly believe that everyone has a talent to do something whether it is art related, building something, problem solving or decorating. Sometimes the talent speaks to you when it nudges you to try something because of your interest in it and sometimes you have to be concious of your surrounding a bit. Perhaps your talent is simply listening to people and giving small pieces of advice. Horns Up!