3 ms·

i have a 14 year old son. probably due to a) bad teeny-movies b) a demotivating school system he believes that ha has to find his "secret" talent - and af

by franze 13y ago

i have a 14 year old son. probably due to a) bad teeny-movies b) a demotivating school system he believes that ha has to find his "secret" talent - and after he has found it - life will I) be easy II) suddenly make sense. i try to explain to him that it (life) just does not work like this he should just do what he is interested in - even if it is hard (especially if it is hard). surprise, surprise he does not believe me. for me the concept of "talent" is just thought-cancer, it might be valid in some edge cases but overall it's just harmfull (not only for teens).

LatvjuAvs 13y ago
He is interested in searching for concept you do not approve :)
mion 13y ago
"Thought cancer", perfect! I always wanted a term like this to describe it. Definitely agree, even if there's such thing as raw natural ability, I dont think the lack of it is among the major reasons people fail. Succes is like a fire, there's no "rule", it can result from several different things and it's very complex. Trying to oversimplify it like the author does can only do harm.
vpeters25 13y ago
He is not too far out. Figuring out your "secret" talent(s) does not make life easier, but it definitely makes easier (and fun) doing the thing you are talented at. The key, in my opinion, is to figure out how to make money off your talent(s).