In this blog post, we will look at how talent and effort work together to help individuals grow and succeed, and how the two can be balanced.
People often say that talent is a congenital attribute and effort is an acquired attribute. This perception makes talent and effort seem like contrasting concepts. However, it is worth considering whether this dichotomous approach is accurate. Let’s look at the dictionary definition of talent and effort. Talent refers to the skills and abilities required to do something. Effort, on the other hand, means putting one’s body and mind into achieving a goal. This raises the question: are the skills and abilities required to do something necessarily innate? Or can they be acquired?
To answer this question, let’s take the example of Korean figure skater Yuna Kim. The talents that Yuna Kim needed to become the best in the world in figure skating include quick reflexes, strength, a sense of balance, and courage. In addition, Yuna Kim must have worked hard with concentration, perseverance, and passion. Now, let’s assume that talent is a congenital attribute and effort is an acquired attribute. If ‘Yuna Kim’ had only relied on her innate talent and not put in the effort, would she have been able to reach the top of the world? Also, even if she had put in the effort, would she have been able to achieve the same results if she had no innate talent? In the end, talent and effort must coexist. In other words, talent and effort are not mutually exclusive concepts, but rather are in a mutually complementary relationship.
Can the elements of concentration, perseverance, and passion shown by Yuna Kim be excluded from the category of talent and ability? No, they cannot. All of these are the talents and abilities that Yuna Kim needed to become the world’s best figure skater. In this context, effort itself becomes talent. Therefore, the assumption that talent is innate and effort is acquired is a contradiction in itself.
As seen above, effort is also a talent. We cannot conclude that either effort or talent is more important or superior. The very idea that effort and talent must be mutually exclusive is meaningless. Furthermore, it is a wrong approach to compare the concepts of effort and talent on an equal footing. Effort is a part of talent and a tool for expressing latent talent.
Let’s take the example of ‘Yuna Kim’ again. ‘Yuna Kim’ probably had various talents such as concentration, perseverance, passion, quickness, strength, balance, and courage. And she expressed her latent talents of quickness, strength, balance, and courage through the talent of effort, which consists of concentration, perseverance, and passion. This is a case where talent has manifested another talent. Then, where does the talent of effort, which is made up of concentration, perseverance, and passion, come from? The ability to concentrate on skating practice comes from perseverance, and perseverance comes from passion for skating. And passion is another talent of Yuna Kim. In the end, effort is not just a single concept, but a collection of various talents, and this talent of effort is what brings out other latent talents.
The degree to which latent talents are expressed can vary depending on the degree of effort. The 10,000-hour rule, which was proposed by Malcolm Gladwell, explains this point well. This can be interpreted as meaning that 10,000 hours of effort will bring out as much latent talent as that. In addition, the quote by Thomas Alva Edison, “Without 1% of inspiration (talent), 99% of effort is not enough to succeed,” can also be understood from this perspective. If you don’t have the latent talent to express no matter how hard you try, it means that it is difficult to achieve your goal.
Finally, the results of a study by a research team led by David Zach Hambrick, a professor at Michigan State University, also support this interpretation. Success requires both latent talent and effort to express that talent. However, the importance of effort and talent may differ depending on the field.
In conclusion, effort is the aggregate of talent and a tool for expressing latent talent. The degree of latent talent is determined by the amount of effort. Therefore, effort alone cannot lead to success, and latent talent alone cannot lead to success. To succeed, you must develop the talent of perseverance through the talent of passion, and the talent of focus through perseverance, and constantly find and develop latent talents. If this process is stopped, the latent talents will not become your own and will continue to remain stagnant.
