Lessons on talent

I don’t watch a lot of TV these days. On those rare occasions that I do, my eyes are glued to the news. But I remember the days when my eyes would be glued to the program American Idol instead.

I used to catch an episode or two of the famous music competition. I was particularly fascinated with the most hated – and sometimes the most loved, and in many occasions, the most admired – judge sitting in the panel, Simon Cowell.

So many contestants were given their moment of fame. Some were really good, and some were really not good; some were talented, and some would’ve been better off doing something else other than singing.

Sometimes, Paula would know the contestant can’t sing, and Randy would know that the contestant doesn’t have the talent, but Simon would know and would insult the contestant with words that cuts right down to the bones and, in no uncertain terms, let the contestant know that he or she couldn’t sing. Then the contestant would break into tears or throw a glass of water on him. Others would beg to be given another chance, but most of them would walk out of the audition room cussing and cursing.

Here’s a thought: Sometimes, every judge in the panel, as well as the audience and the whole production crew, already knows the truth, but one person still doesn’t get it or refuses to get it. That person is the contestant himself!

But are those people really so dense that they don’t recognize their weakness? I don’t think so. But I think they refuse to acknowledge their weakness, and this is why they never improve.

Now let me bring you back to that famous program.

During an elimination round, a talented singer was voted off. Now unlike those who don’t have talent and were eliminated, this one had talent and yet was voted off. All three judges voted him off. I wanted to know why, and my guess was everybody wanted to know why! The controversial judge, Simon Cowell, explained, “You have a good voice, and you’re a nice guy. You just didn’t do the one thing necessary to go through to the next round. You didn’t stand out from the crowd.”

This brings me to another thought. Having talent alone wouldn’t bring a person to true success. While talent is important, it’s still insufficient. So many people have talent, but not many of them have reached their dreams or goals with it.

You need something else other than talent. You need a resolve to be the best in what you do, to be the best in the field. Because unless you stand out in a crowd, you’ll just blend in with many others and remain unnoticed.

There are many who started their success journey without extraordinary talent. They worked like crazy, and they were consumed with the idea of being the best in their field. What talent they had was a good starting point, but their efforts and determination were what propelled them to another level, beyond what mere talents can offer. American musician Jerry Garcia said, “It’s not enough to be the best at what you do; you must be perceived as the only one who does what you do.” And that’s when real success is achieved.

You need to quickly establish why you’re worthwhile. You need to make yourself remarkable. Remarkable means something worthy enough to remark on.

Be excellent. Better yet, be known as the only one who can do what you do. And then you’ll reap the rewards of your labor.

This has been my guide all along, that in all things I need to do, I do so as unto the Lord, and not to anyone or anything else. This is the best standard we can ever strive for.

(Leadership skills are life skills. Spend two whole days with Francis Kong discovering the beauty of both on September 12-13 at the EDSA Shangri-La Hotel. For further inquiries, contact Inspire at 09158055910, or call 632-6310912 for details.)