I am a classical musician. my job is very much a job of delivering on a high level, because everything I do can be heard by at least 4 people (immediate colleag

I am a classical musician. my job is very much a job of delivering on a high level, because everything I do can be heard by at least 4 people (immediate colleagues) at best, and a couple of thousands (at "worst"). My talent has always been my ability to practice. I could spend more hours, more focused than most of my peers. I, frankly, have a talent for spending a lot of time in what Vygotsky would call the zone of proximal development. Despite all that there are loads of better bassoon players. When I was 25 I had to take a step back and realize I wasnt one of those amazing players. No sane amount of practice would get me to their level (which they reached by practicing less than me!). Whatever we read into the term "talent" I think we can all agree that it isn't fair. We all sooner or later have to chose between our own sanity and trying to push it further. I have found that taking a step back has actually made me a better player. Getting a child and being forced to distance myself from what so long was a large part of my identity was all in all good for me. It just forced me to be a bit more fatalistic and accept that I won't become much better than I am today.