Comments on: Talent is Hard Work

By: kim

kim — Thu, 11 Oct 2007 20:35:57 +0000

Great article. Yours and the one at Freelance Switch. Working at agencies for almost 20 years, I have come to the conclusion that there are a lot of skillful stylists that copy someone else’s technique just to get the job done. There are a lot of “talented copycats” out there.

By: Rik Catlow

Rik Catlow — Wed, 10 Oct 2007 13:38:22 +0000

Yes Jerome, the title is somewhat of an eye catcher and not completely true. Yes, talent is a huge factor but in my experience it’s not what makes success. Hard work and dedication is what makes someone successful.

By: Jerome Chadel

Jerome Chadel — Thu, 04 Oct 2007 15:28:26 +0000

Talent is hard work.
But… some people have a bigger seed of talent.
So… some people have a bigger seed of hard work.
So what is to be talented at something? Just hard work?

What’s the difference between the top 10 tennis players? Do you think this is just hard work? Or Federer and Nadal are more “talented”?

With the same amount of work, people don’t get the same quality.
I think talent is not just hard work. It’s of course a great part of it. But there are probably some unexplained reasons that make the difference.

I agree with your discussion but not with your title.

Let me congratulate you with your site! Awesome and clear design.
I am redesigning mine and this not easy to get that level.

By: Spencer Lavery

Spencer Lavery — Mon, 01 Oct 2007 08:41:48 +0000

I couldn’t agree more.

At times though, the frustration has led to me being less than gracious and retorting the sentiments of your blog when somebody is kind enough to say “You’re talented” to me. Sometimes it just feels as though that statement shits all over the hard work I’ve put in.

By: Misty Beier

Misty Beier — Fri, 14 Sep 2007 18:20:36 +0000

I also agree with everyone here, but if you have the talent and the passion needed to make a career out of web design than it shouldn’t be hard work, right?

For me, I don’t think I have the talent, but I certainly have the passion for web design. So this means for me I do have to work hard and study what others have done. Much of the stuff I’ve learned so far is self-taught and just going out there and reading up on as much design sites, blogs, and online tutorials as I can, because I want my experience and skills to be better than just good.

By: George

George — Fri, 14 Sep 2007 16:58:46 +0000

Well put.

When others see our quick and seemingly effortless results, it discounts the many years of effort that we put into learning our craft. The countless hours of trial and error, learning, and research, that lead us to being able to accomplish what we do. Call it talent if you wish, to me it’s determination and focus.

By: Cori

Cori — Wed, 12 Sep 2007 02:22:55 +0000

An important factor to have in cultivating talent is motivation. If you like drawing but you don’t have that drive to do it so you can maybe master it in the end, you’re going to stay where you are or maybe even lose the skills you have.

By: KI

KI — Tue, 11 Sep 2007 04:13:22 +0000

I agree.

Its like so many people I have talked to that watched “The Secret”. They walk away thinking you just have to think positive, and that’s it. When in reality it’s working hard and thinking positive.

By: Joshua Blount

Joshua Blount — Tue, 11 Sep 2007 04:01:08 +0000

I totally agree with this. At times I wonder what makes me different from other people in my field, what I can offer that others can’t, and it is really hard to come up with anything, because about 90 percent of my “talent” or “abilities” were learned or built, sometimes while on the job!

Incredible.