Talent Ain't Enough

Getting ahead in a difficult profession requires avid faith in yourself. That is why some people with mediocre talent, but with great inner drive, go much further than people with vastly superior talent. -Sophia Loren


Greetings folks! I was really wrestling with what to post this week. I had so many ideas in my head and none of them really jumped out. Then I remembered a quote I shared with my students yesterday and thought it would be perfect for today’s post.

So often we focus on talent and ability as the impetus for success and achievement, and rightfully so. If you’re 5’6, 145 pounds it’s unlikely that a professional sports career is in your future. If you can’t grab the rim at the elementary school basketball court, it’s not probable that you’ll be jumping over cars in any NBA All-star games in the near future. And if every time the wind blows you end up across the street (and you don’t live in Chicago), it’s unlikely that you’ll be dodging or making any tackles in the NFL.

Talent is important; very important. But it’s just the starting point, not the ending point. At some point in your life, talent has to merge with drive and determination to equal success. When I was in middle school I faced a lot of adversity. I was a gifted student and was unsure of whether I wanted to be a nerd or a class clown. So I walked the fine line between both falling over on the side of jackass more times than not, and in the process I gave my mother a headache that lasted 3 years. Whenever she would leave one of the many parent-teacher conferences she had about me her speech to me would often include her saying “there are a lot of geniuses underneath the bridge so being smart isn’t good enough.” Honestly, I heard her, I understood her, but it really didn’t hit me until I got older. Despite how smart all my teachers said I was, and I knew I was, being smart wasn’t good enough. Hell, it didn’t mean anything if they failed me.

I see so many of us (young people) who have all sorts of talent and gifts, but are wasting them because we’re content with just having them. That’s like a guy who buys a new Lamborghini Gallardo and never drives it. It’s a waste. It does no one any good to keep such a powerful and beautiful car locked up and it does you no good to keep your talents to yourself. We’ve all been given gifts not for our own entertainment but to share with the world. I’m reminded of the quote, “If you have a talent, use it in every which way possible. Don't hoard it. Don't dole it out like a miser. Spend it lavishly like a millionaire intent on going broke.” -Brendan Francis

Talent isn’t enough. If you don’t believe me see Michael Jordan or Peyton Manning as examples. Michael Jordan got cut from his high school basketball team; a clear sign that at least one person thought that he wasn’t good enough. After that fateful moment, he won at every level he competed at, and today is renowned as one of the best athletes ever. He isn’t the greatest because of his physical prowess. It wasn’t because he was the fastest, the strongest, or the most agile. If you ask MJ’s teammates, his competitors, and his coaches, they’ll tell you that he won more because he wanted it more than anyone else and as a result, worked harder than anyone else.

If you take a look at the Manning family tree you’re probably find that Peyton Manning probably isn’t even the most talented quarterback in his family. Father Archie Manning was a really good quarterback playing on a terrible team. Brother Eli, while not as famous, is more mobile and athletic. Then there is older brother Cooper, who some scouts regard as the best Manning quarterback, who may have re-wrote the Manning family history books were it not for a neck injury that forced him to forgo his NFL dreams. So why is Peyton one of the NFL’s best quarterbacks and constantly in the conversation as one of the best ever? He’s talented AND he works harder than nearly every player and some coaches. He wants it more than anyone else, is a perfectionist, and demands the best from himself and everyone around him.

I do not subscribe to the theory that the most successful people are ALWAYS the most talented people. I do subscribe to the theory that the most successful people have found a way to take their talent, however big or small, merge it with drive and determination, and make the most of it.

We need to find a way to take our talent however great or miniscule, combine it with fervor, focus, and fidelity and make the most of it. If you’re a doctor, lawyer, or work in another profession that is difficult to climb the ladder in, there are tons of talented people around you. And I know what you’re thinking; there are a ton of not-so-talented people around you as well. But the reason why the less talented people are even able to compete, (other than nepotism and office affairs), is because they’re hard workers. So what you graduated medical school at or near the top of your class. Now what? Who cares that you graduated magna cum laude or graduated magna thank you lawdy? What matters after that is what you do with the talent and knowledge that you have. What matters is how hard you are going to work to be successful.

Until next time, Stay Up and Be Blessed!