In many cases, it might be a synonym for “intelligence” or in other domains it might mean “athleticism.” At Digital Innovators it means much more. We consider Talent to be an individual’s unique capabilities and their ability to apply them in different situations. The ability to be flexible, resilient and creative. We consider Talent to be more than just excellence at one specific discipline.
This definition of talent also helps people grow. For example, if we are trying to improve in some domain and have high aspirations, we are continually reaching the edge of our current skills. Whenever we sense we are at this “edge,” and our performance is judged relative to others, we can interpret the relative feedback as evidence for a lack of talent.
Instead Digital Innovators think the measure of talent as an individual’s rate of improvement, self-belief and confidence. The latter interpretation helps learners persist, while still allowing for talent differences. It is the classic tortoise and the hare story—others may be speeding rabbits in our domain, but given that we aspire to excel, we may plod along like the tortoise, eventually reaching our goals with deliberate effort.