A talent (or gift, or aptitude) is the skill that someone has to do something that is difficult. It is an ability that someone is born with. People say they are “born with a talent”. Someone who has talent is called talented. Talented people may have more than one talent. Music, dancing, acting, sports, or other skills have people with talent.
Even if someone has talent they may still have to work very hard if they want to perform well. Some people become quite good at something even if they do not have much talent, but if they are willing to work very hard at the skill.
The word talent used to mean a weight and a piece of money in Assyria, Greece and Rome. This is the sense in which it is used in the Bible in the parable of the five talents (Matthew, xxv, 14-30).
I’m a bit puzzled about the topic of this blog, I mean, I understand people do have talents that don’t need to be shoved down other people’s throats but I don’t know why people should need to keep their talents hidden, Are we that uncomfortable that we cannot just accept some people’s talent? On one of the latest Drag Race series, one of the contestants is very plain in saying she has talent, she can sing, dance, act etc and she shouldn’t have to hide those things. She has to remain humble but not hide the talents away……it would be a waste if you have such talents to waste them and by hiding, I feel that’s exactly what is happening.
I dont actually think I have one……unless being able to drink like a fish once or twice a year counts. I took a couple of those online “who are you” quizzes and both told me my talent was Staying Calm, which for those who’ve seen/heard or read my rants will probably be a bit of a laugh really. I mean, I take 5 – 10 minutes per day when I get home to moan about everything…..even if i’ve had a brill day there will be something that has pissed me off but maybe I just try to hold it in and then process it when it isn’t actually going to negatively affect me!
There’s a lot of things that make me a talented person – empathy, language, some cooking talent, a good sense of humour and ability to make people laugh (at me or through something i’ve said or done – either way, i’ll take it!) but I wouldn’t say these things are hidden per se.
I am the person I am, not ideal but still I do try to be better and maybe it is a talent to constantly be pushing myself to be better? I genuinely don’t know.
Do you have a hidden talent? Why do you keep it hidden? Is it something that is good about you but that you dont want to shove it in people’s faces or is it something which very rarely needs a show off?
Maybe it’s something that changed for me as I got older, I used to feel a talent was something people had a natural ability for e.g. I have a good ear for language – not the best as I learned from a friend of mine when we both picked up a “Teach yourself Mandarin in 5 easy and 78 difficult lessons” (or some such) and spent half an hour reading whilst eating Chinese, at the end of that time, I could say the very basics: Hello, Goodbye, Thank you etc, he however was gibbering away like a native but I digress, I used to be very comfortable doing things, dancing, art, and other things whereas as I have aged, I feel less comfortable showing those things off especially as I am not very good at them – maybe it’s an ego thing, I mean I used to feel less worried about others judgement but then I’ve always been uncomfortable with judgement so maybe not. I genuinely do not know.
I think this is going to be another short one today, the topic has certainly made me think but it’s difficult to talk about a talent when you don’t feel you have one.
Half Baked Productions 