What actually is "Talent"?
Is it a compliment, an insult, or something in between...
I come from a competitive background. Education, sports, music, art…. life. I suppose I am innately a “competitive” person, but I’m not entirely sure how much of that comes from my genetic makeup vs my upbringing and life experiences. There was a point in my life where I was embarrassed to be called “competitive”. As if it meant that I am trying to “win” at everything I do. Winning is an abstract statement however, it needs qualification. What are you trying to “win”? The person standing on top of the podium holding the trophy does not inherently win. That person might have sacrificed too much, gone too far, lost themselves along the way to the podium. They might secretly hate the very thing that they just competed in. The real winner, or should I say winners, are those who loved the process, who grew from the experience, who had a great time and left with a feeling of accomplishment. And of course, the person on the podium can also be all of those things AND take home the trophy and put in on the shelf.
As a competitive person, I naturally get joy from being the one on the podium. I think it’s a waste if you don’t. I also am very aware of the fact that there are thousands of people out there who are objectively better than me in any given moment at whatever it is… and that’s a beautiful thing. The human race is amazing, and it is a privilege and an honor to partake in difficult things that take hard work and dedication. My competition is and always has been with myself. I want to beat myself, and I sometimes I want to lose to myself too. I want to push myself to the edge of where I can go, while juggling the dozens of other tasks we accumulate as we get older.
Competition is a catalyst for growth.
I have been called "talented” at certain things throughout my life. I believe this is meant as a compliment, and I appreciate it, but it’s kind of a loaded word. Talent can imply a “natural gift” that the person was born with and can do effortlessly. Sometimes we call people “talented” so that we can explain why they are better than us, while conserving our ego. I do believe that there are genetic factors that allow for people to excel in certain ways. Without actually performing DNA sequencing on someone, who are we to judge who has “talent” and who has to “work hard”? Even more importantly, why should it even matter? A “talented” person still has to work their ass off to become the best. After all, SOMEONE has to be the best. There’s only limited spots for that… so maybe don’t hold your breath.
When it comes to running, I’ve done about as much as I can do to optimize my potential. I eat well, I have a performance nutrition coach, I have a running coach, I have done lactate testing, sweat rate testing, checked my bloodwork, focus on quality sleep and recovery, yoga and prehab etc… and guess what? I’m not winning any races. I love to suffer, I’ll go out and run 30 miles in a blizzard just because. I can tell you it’s not a lack of effort. I just am where I am. And that’s ok. It’s actually amazing. I’m so beyond happy to be doing the things that bring me joy. I wonder how I would feel about all this if I was the 1% of the 1%, but maybe it’s best I never find out :)