a dime a dozen. when you grow up, as a child, talent was the biggest and best thing you could have. it was so bright and promising. "your child has talent." parents perk up a bit, the kid walks with a little stutter step thinking, "i have talent." where does this talent go? the thing you realize as you get older is that talent and intelligence and any innate ability is pretty much useless unless applied. how can anyone not realize this?



it's easy to be lulled into a sense of security when you keep on thinking that talent will some day magically transform into skill. but nothing turns talent into skill except work. hard work even. talent is really just a barometer of how fast you can learn and how high you can achieve. whether or not you hit those heights are entirely up to you.



i could never understand it when nba pundits would exclaim "derrick coleman is such a waste of gargantuan talent!" to me, why wouldn't dc want to be the best basketball player he could be? but now. now i know. sometimes if things come too easy, or seem too simple, there is no drive to improve or achieve. what separates the men from the boys is puberty and a work ethic.



to create diamonds you need pressure, lots of it. and even then you need a skilled hand to cut it up into the beautiful perfect gem, glittering on somebody's left hand. if talent is black rock awaiting diamond transformation, there needs to be pressure and skill applied to it. talent will only get you a few encouraging words and a smile from your parents. that's it. skill gives you money, power, and respect. whatchu' need in life, when you eatin' right, help you sleep at night. it's the key to life. money, power, respect.....um, yeah.