There's no such thing as talent

There’s no such thing as talent. And if there were, it wouldn't matter anyway.

I've been telling this to people for years and no one ever believes I'm telling the truth and I absolutely am.

Most people love to admire the talent of their favorite athlete, singer, writer, business person, or whoever, but I guarantee you, talent played a minimal role in their success. Instead, their hard work, persistence, and clarity of purpose was the driving force behind their greatness.

The greatest athlete of my lifetime is far and away Michael Jordan - famous for not only his ability on the basketball court but also for his near psychotic competitiveness and desire for greatness. Most sports fans know this, but many people who don't care for sports don't, but he was cut from his high school basketball team. Twice.

Now if talent were the driving force behind his life, this couldn't happen. Could a high school coaching staff miss all the talent of the greatest basketball player on Earth when it was playing against other random high school kids? Does talent of that caliber not show up until later in life? Was he only good because of his height that came a little later?

Absolutely not.

This failure was the gasoline that fueled Michael Jordan's ascendency to becoming the greatest of all time:

“It was embarrassing not making the team,” Jordan later said. He went home, locked himself in his room and cried.

Then he picked himself up and turned the cut into motivation. “Whenever I was working out and got tired and figured I ought to stop, I’d close my eyes and see that list in the locker room without my name on it,” Jordan would explain.”

Now this post isn't a fan letter to Michael Jordan - he's just a great example you should remember when you are thinking about your own talent or lack thereof. Where would basketball be if Jordan, frustrated by his lack of talent, decided to pursue a career as an English professor instead?

Your only talent that matters is your determination to do whatever it is you want to do with your life.

Other than that, the idea of talent just exists for you to make excuses.

If you're no good at something, you use your lack of talent as a reason to quit.

If you're good at something, you use your talent as a reason to coast instead of putting in more work.

It’s what you do with your time that matters - not how you were born. The second you start thinking about your talent, you start missing out on the things you want in your life.