Don’t Let Your Hidden Talents Die: 7 Ways To Go & Find Them Again
America’s Got Talent has it all wrong.
Talent isn’t all about juggling balls or eating fire. Or even doing a lumbar twisting rumba. For me, talent is simply doing the best with what we have. Kindness could be a talent. So could be survival. It’s difficult to pin it down when media pins it down to exhibitionism and audience ratings. Or maybe I am all wrong – because I never made it to a talent show.
But wait. I am writing this on a popular blog. And you are (hopefully) reading it. Maybe, I have some talent after all.
Talent is overrated.
debunks the myth of inborn talent in his bestselling book. He talks about “deliberate practice” that separates the achievers from the pack.
“deliberate practice requires that one identify certain sharply defined elements of performance that need to be improved, and then work intently on them.”
The bad news is that you have to work hard with pinpoint intention to polish your talents. The good news is that there are more opportunities than ever before to spit-shine your hidden talents and not let them die. Let’s talk about them.
Have You Discovered Your Talent?
Thanks to the glut of hyped overachievers, it’s easy to feel overawed into silence. It’s easy to think that talent leading to riches is THE end goal. But using your talents need not be a competitive catapult – it can be the little joy for a dull weekend. Or a stress buster on a busy day. It is the mere act of pursuing something to the best of your ability every day that makes you unique. Your passion could be a joy factor for yourself alone, or it could bring a smile to those around you.
So, if you have discovered something you are good at (or want to be good at), ask yourself – have you bottled it, or is it time to set it free!
Tap Into Your Childhood
Childhood likes and talents often do not blossom into hobbies or careers. Rediscovering them could be a key for personal development.
Maybe, you folded aerodynamic paper planes or fingerpainted. I drew accurate sketches of World War II aircrafts till the drawing skills went into flowcharts and circulatory systems.
tells us to recall our childhood games and use them as clues to figure out current passions. Try to figure our clues from the books you read or the music you listened to. But how?
could help you talk to yourself. You could discover forgotten desires and find creative ways to bring them into your current work. I am not drawing Spitfires anymore, but I do use a lot of visual sketching to think around my writing.
Feed Your Mind
Thanks to the Web, you can just “hang around”…and absorb like a weed.
You don’t have to go to an art gallery. You can just tap a word in a search engine and be transported to
or the , or any other . If you cannot find your peers around you, simply feed your mind with resources like , , and Google+ communities. Take any kind of skill or talent – you will find some form of its expression online.
Take A Second Look At Your Job
Let’s face it. Not everyone among us can .
We have bills to pay and mortgages to cut. You are a lawyer living by the billable minutes. You want to be an artist in your next life but there’s no time to bring up the “other talent I had” question. Heck, why not look into being an art attorney. The point is not to leave everything behind and chase the rainbow, but to take a second look into your job and discover areas where you can apply your hidden talents.
Staying in our comfort zones is boring. The latent talents could be just the thing to add a bit of freshness to the daily job. Your talent could also be the special skill which sets you apart from the rest.
Cal Newport in his book
talks about the benefits of creating career capital with such rare skills. Career capital are the unique skills you have that can add the extra edge to the work you do. He gives us the idea to adopt the mindset of a “craftsman” who continuously works to refine his skills and lives outside his comfort zone.
Use Your Friends
Honest friends will tell you that you suck.
That’s useful feedback if you use them as sounding boards for your talent. They will also tell you specifically or even silently, that you have the talent. A friend of mine is very artistic with nail design. She seeks any opportunity to work on her friends. Come a wedding, and her mobile starts ringing. That’s useful practice if she ever decides to chuck her PR job for nail designing.
Maybe, you are a student with a Zen for programming. Ever given a thought to creating little programs for your friends and family. Like a small tax calculator that’s personalized for their needs? Or macros that can make working in Excel a little easier? Who knows, with your talent on display, they could be the very people to support your dreams one day. So, think of areas where you can help the readily available clientele of family and friends with your hidden skills. For free of course.
Use Social Media For A Feedback
Take charge of your talents. What easier way than social media!
became a music sensation in six seconds. Of course, those six seconds of Vine hid many years of hard work. This is the time where you have to visually showcase your talents. If you have even a smattering of some talent (or even an interest), don’t be invisible – bring it online. You could be a hashtag away from crowd likes. You can get a side job with social media .
Gary Vaynerchuk launched a talent agency called
for wannabe Vine stars.
is doing it with Instagram. YouTube has created a galaxy of homegrown stars like Lindsey Stirling and CDZA.
I won’t talk about the other Canadian who was discovered through YouTube. Justin Bieber.
Spread out on creative melting pots like , , , and new ones like
and take inspiration from like-minds. Niche social networks are springing up around interests. You just have to look around.
Be A Part Of Crowdsourcing
went to Kickstarter. Successfully funded. There are very small projects around your talents which you can set up successfully with crowd support. Trawl through the
page on the popular crowdfunding site. There are other types of crowdsourced activities around the Web which are not about raising funds. Participating in these gives you instant feedback and is a free no-effort outlet for the talents you might want to show.
Love writing…try
(I actually started with this myself). You can make money on the side with . Into fashion? Look into
and its curated design contests.
Companies know that they can bet on the crowd for innovative answers. Many of them are using it for not only collaboration but also hiring. Check .
Be Willing To Be Stupid
We have the permission to create junk. The one thing that stops us from rekindling our talents is a feeling of inadequacy. But you do not need anyone’s permission, or need to be an expert. You need not worry about things that didn’t happen in the past. Just start. Create junk…but create it in little bits every day. The greatest power on Earth is the cumulative potential of little steps. The first draft of a book is never the best. Writing only hundred words a day could turn out a book in six months’ time. Or bigger – two books in an year. The author who finishes the book is a far improved one than the one who started it.
You could be singing quietly right now. Are you singing your song? Tell us how are you utilizing your talents. It could be a spark of inspiration for the rest of our community.
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科目：高中英语
题型：阅读理解
完形填空 (共20小题；每小题1.5分，满分30分)
A beggar, carrying a shabby(破旧的) old wallet, was begging alone from house to house. As he complained about his 36 , he kept wondering that people who lived in 37 houses should always be unsatisfied, 38 rich they might be, and they should go so far as to 39 all they have.
&&&&&& “Here, for example,” he said, the former master of this house succeeded in trading, and made himself very rich. By then, instead of stopping, and handing over his 40 to another, and spending the rest of his years 41 peace, he took to(从事) equipping ships. He expected to g but the ships were 42 , and his treasures were lost. Now they all lie at the bottom of the sea, and he has found his 43 disappeared like those in dreams. In short, examples of this are 44.
&&&&&& At this moment Fortune suddenly appeared to the beggar and said, “Listen! I have long wished to 45 you. Here are a lot of gold coins I have found. Hold out your wallet, and I wi but only on this condition: All shall be gold that falls into the wallet, but if 46 of them falls out of the wallet to the ground, it 47 become dust. Consider this well. I have warned you I shall 48 keep my word. Your wallet is old, don’t fill it 49 its power.” The beggar was almost too overjoyed to breathe. He 50 felt the ground below his feet. A stream of coins were poured 51 it. The wallet soon became rather heavy.
&&&&&& “Is that 52 ?” “Not yet,” “Isn’t it 53 ?” “Never fear.” “Consider, you are a millionaire.” “Just a little more, just 54 a handful,” But at that moment the wallet broke, the gold coins 55 dust and Fortune disappeared. The beggar had nothing but his empty wallet and remained as poor as before.
A. plan&&&&&&&&&&& &&&&&& B. fate&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&& C. idea&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&& D. dream
A. dark&&&&&&&&&&& &&&& B. poor&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&& C. clean&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&& D. rich
A. how&&&&&& &&&&&&&&&& & B. so&&&&&&&&&&& &&&&&& C. however&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&& D. whatever
A. win &&&&&&&& &&&& B. lose&&&&&&&&&&& &&& C. throw&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&& D. forget
A. business&&&&&&&&&& && B. debt&&&&&&&&&& &&&&& C. money&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&& D. chance
A. to&&&&&&&&& &&&& &&&&&&&&&&& B. on&&&&&&&&&&&& &&&&& &&& C. with&&& &&&&&&& &&&&&& D. in
A. bought&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&& && & B. sold&&&&&&&&&& &&&&& C. missed&&&&&&&&&&&&& &&&&&&& D. robbed
A. luck&&&&&&&&&& &&&&&&&& B. riches&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&& C. trade&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&& D. future
A. countless&&&&&&&&&& & B. wonderful&&&&&&&&&&&&&&& C. helpless&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&& D. funny
A. admire&&&&&& &&&&&&&&&&& B. help&&& &&&&&&&&& &&& C. encourage&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&& D. excite
A. little&&&&&&&&&&& &&&&&& B. much&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&& C. any&&&&&&&&&&&&&
A. must&&&&&&&&&&& &&&&& B. may&&& &&&&&&&&&&& C. shall&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&& D. can
A. mostly&&&&&&&&&&& &&& B. simply&&&&&&&&& &&& C. possibly&&&&&&&& &&& D. strictly
A. beyond&&&&&&&&&& &&&& B. within&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&& C. during&&&&&&&&&& & D. by
A. really&&&&&&&&&&&& && B. actually&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&& C. hardly&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&& D. nearly
A. for&&&&&&&& &&&&&&& &&&&&& B. into&&&&&&&&&& &&&&& &&& C. on&&&&& &&&&&& &&&&&&& D. from
A. so&&&&&&&&&&&&
B. enough&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&& C. true&&&&&&&&&&&& && D. right
A. trembling&&&&&&&&&& B. shaking&&&&&&&&&& &&&&&& C. breaking&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&& D. rolling
A. try&&&&&&&&&&&&& &&&&& B. put&&&&&&&&&&& &&&& C. leave&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&& D. add
A. cleared up&&&&&&&&& &&&&&& B. brought up&&&&&& && C. fell into&&&&&&&&&& &&&&&& D. turned into
科目：高中英语
题型：阅读理解
“The pen is more powerful than the sword（刀）.” There have been many writers who used their pens to fight things that were wrong. Mrs Harriet Beecher Stowe was one of them.
　　She was born in the U.S.A. in 1811.One of her books not only made her famous but has been described as one that excited the world, and was helpful in causing a civil war and freeing the enslaved race. The civil war was the American Civil War of 1861, in which the Northern States fought the Southern States and finally won.
　　This book that shook the world was called Uncle Tom's Cabin. There was time when every English-speaking man, woman, and child has read this novel that did so much to stop slavery.& Not many people read it today, but it is still very interesting. The book has shown us how a warm-hearted writer can arouse (唤起) people's sympathies. The author herself had neither been to the Southern States nor been a slave. The Southern Americans were very angry at the book, which they said did not at all represent true state of affairs, but the Northern Americans were wildly excited over it and were so inspired by it that they were ready to go to war to set the slaves free.
According to the passage______
　A. every English-speaking person has read Uncle Tom's Cabin
　B. Uncle Tom's Cabin was not very interesting
　C. those who don't speak English cannot have read Uncle Tom's Cabin
　D. the book Uncle Tom's Cabin did a great deal in the American Civil War
What do you learn about Mrs Harriet Beecher Stowe from the passage?
　A. She had been living in the north of America before the American Civil War broke out.
　B. She herself encouraged the Northern Americans to go to war to set the slaves free.
　C. She was better as writing as swinging (挥舞) a sword.
　D. She had once been a slave.
Why could Mrs Harriet Beecher Stowe's book cause a civil war in America?
　A. She wrote so well that Americans loved her very much.
　B. She disclosed the terrible wrongs that had been done to the slaves in the Southern States.
　C. The Southern Americans hated the book while the Northern Americans like it.
　D. The book had been read by many Americans.
What can we learn from the passage?
　A. We needn't use weapons (武器) to fight things that are wrong.
　B. A writer is more helpful in a war than a soldier.
　C. We must understand the importance of literature and art.
　D. No war can be won without such a book as Uncle Tom's Cabin.
科目：高中英语
题型：阅读理解
Directions: Read the passage carefully and answer the questions or complete the statements in the fewest possible words.
&&& We’d like to agree with the recent report comparing the difference between a TV and a computer: When you use one you turn your brain on, with the other you turn it off.
Your brain may not be the only thing the TV turns off. It seems that men who watch a lot of TV are more sedentary, eat more food and are generally much fatter. Similar result have been found for women. Experts think that watching TV means that not only are you sedentary, but you have to watch food advertisement inducing you to eat more. The food that you are being induced to eat may not be good enough for you health.
If you are a couch potato, here are some suggestions:
Tape a piece of paper to the back of your remote control or TV Guide, and every time you watch a show, note how long you sit there and what you eat..
Review the record after a week. This can be a shock.
Don’t have a TV having a TV in your bedroom greatly increases viewing time and if you tend to eat while viewing, the results are obvious.
Think of a healthy way instead of watching TV that you like. This can be as simply as walking the dog or walking to visit a neighbor regularly.
After a few months you are likely to be surprised about how much more time you seem to have and how much better you feel.
(Note: Answer the questions or complete the statements in NO MORE THAN TEN WORDS.)
The phrase “a couch potato” best describe a person who ___________.
The author believes watching TV _______________ your brain.
Why shouldn’t you put a TV set in your bedroom?______________.
According to the passage, which maybe the healthy ways? ___________.
科目：高中英语
根据对话内容，从对话后的选项中选出填入空白处的最佳选项。选项中有两项为多余选项。
—What’s the matter with you, Tom?
—Oh, & Maybe I’ve got a cold.
—& & Why don’t you take some cold stop?
—That’s what I took the last time I had a cold.& & Maybe that’ll help.
（Two days later）
—How are you feeling now?
—Getting better.
&&&&&& A．Does it work well?
&&&&&& B．Good idea.
&&&&&& C．Glad to hear it.
&&&&&& D．I feel a little bad under the weather now.
&&&&&& E．It worked pretty well.
&&&&&& F．It’s very kind of you.
&&&&&& G．That’s too bad.
科目：高中英语
题型：阅读理解
The term “multitasking” originally referred to a computer's ability to carry out several tasks at one time. For many people, multitasking has become a way of life and even a key to success. In fact, some excellent mental aerobic exercises (大脑训练) involve engaging the brain in two or more challenging activities at a time. Although checking e-mail while talking on a phone and reading the newspaper may be second nature for some people, many times multitasking can make us less productive, rather than more. And studies show that too much multitasking can lead to increased stress, anxiety and memory loss.
In order to multitask, the brain uses an area known as the prefrontal cortex (前额叶脑皮层). Brain scans of volunteers performing multiple tasks together show that as they shift from task to task, this front part of the brain actually takes a moment of rest between tasks. You may have experienced a prefrontal cortex “moment of rest” yourself if you've ever dialed (拨电话) a phone number and suddenly forgotten who you called when the line is answered. What probably occurred is that between the dialing and the answering, your mind shifted to another thought or task, and then took that “moment” to come back. Research has also shown that for many volunteers, job efficiency (效率) declines while multitasking, as compared to when they perform only one task at a time.
Multitasking is easiest when at least one of the tasks is habitual, or requires little thought. Most people don' t find it difficult to eat and read the newspaper at the same time. However, when two or more attention-requiring tasks are attempted at one time, people sometimes make mistakes.
We often don't remember things as well when we're trying to manage several details at the same time. Without mental focus, we may not pay enough attention to new information coming in, so it never makes it into our memory stores. That is one of the main reasons we forget people's names—even sometimes right after they have introduced themselves. Multitasking can also affect our relationships. If someone checks their e-mail while on the phone with a friend, they may come off as absent-minded or disinterested. It can also cause that person to miss or overlook key information being passed on to them.
1. Why are some mental aerobic exercises designed to engage people in multitasking?
A. To make them more productive.&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&
B. To reduce their stress and anxiety.
C. To develop their communication Skills.&&&&&&&&&
D. To help them perform daily tasks more easily.
2. According to Paragraph 2, why may a person suddenly forget who he has called?
A. He may have his prefrontal cortex temporarily damaged.&&&&
B. He is probably interrupted by another task.
C. He is probably not very familiar with the person he has called.&&&&
D. He may need a rest between dialing and speaking.
3. People tend to make mistakes when&&&&&& .
A. they perform several challenging tasks at a time&
B. new messages are processed one after another&&&&
C. their relationships with others are affected&&&&&&&
D. the tasks require little thought
4. What is the main idea of the passage?
A. Multitasking has become a way of life.
B. Multitasking often leads to efficiency decline.
C. Multitasking exercises need to be improved.
D. Multitasking enables people to remember things better.
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