Talent.
They say it is everything. Some people have it. Some people don’t.
I watch people who don’t have talent all the time. I watch people who have some talent all the time.
I watch kids who sparkle. I watch kids who just ‘have it’.
I watch kids who learn fast and kids who learn slow.
I watch kids who kick the beam and I watch kids who fall off it 50 times and still keep going.
I watch the ones who are all mouth and I watch ones who were written off but never gave up.
There is more to talent than just having ‘it’.
There is more to talent than sparkle and fizz and stretchy limbs or the best voice or the cleverest brain.
***
She’s nine years old.
She has some talent. She’s pretty good, in a ‘will never be in the olympics’ kind of way.
I love to watch her.
I love her strength, her 6 pack, her neat limbs and her dainty dancing. I love that she never smiles because her brain is focused on being the best that she can be.
4 days a week she finishes school at 3.30pm and by 4.30pm she is at gym, ready for 4 hours of press ups, leg lifts, running, stretching and working moves over and over again.
She gets home and uses our living room as a gym for another hour. Every trip to the park is a chance to practise.
She never moans.
She never grumbles.
She never asks not to go tonight.
It’s not the talent that impresses me. It’s the dedication, the determination.
The relentless, mature, single-minded drive.
Its not the talent that inspires me. It’s not what I love most.
She embodies one phrase for me, a phrase I think should be drilled into the brain of every kid.
“Hard work beats talent, when talent doesn’t work hard.”
Written for The Gallery – Talent.
On the street where Chris grew up, the kids were fairly evenly divided between two primary schools. At the one that Chris didn’t go to was a teacher who loved table tennis:
http://greenreading.blogspot.co.uk/2010/06/reading-12-table-tennis-stars-from-one.html
Matthew Syed was the most successful and his book “Bounce” is supposed to be pretty good, all about the talent v hard work/Malcolm Gladwell’s 10,000 hours ideas.
One of my children (you’ll know which one 😉 ) gets a bit put out by being described as, or praised for being hard-working – although she is really impressively diligent academically – because she thinks it means that we don’t think she’s naturally clever! (I think we probably can’t win with her …)
I wish I had dedication like that!
What an absolutely lovely dedication to your girl’s endeavours Merry. Just lovely.
My son has a talent and that is rugby. He’s really good at it. He flies. He has his coaches all excited.
His sister hasn’t found her ‘thing’ though, but I love that she tries lots and lots of different things. Maybe one will stick, maybe it won’t. But like you, I admire her for trying and sticking with it
I love this! Love the words, love the photo and love that dedication! She quite reminds me of my daughter. My daughter’s ‘thing’ is dancing – she goes to classes four days a week and on the days she doesn’t go, she’s lost. She works so hard at it and loves it so much.
Wow that’s incredible. Hard work, trumps talent I reckon x
How beautifully put, and your post is kind of in-keeping with mine.
I totally agree.
You also have talent in the way you write x