Ability is what you make of your talent.

For sports people, the math is easy. The more you work at improving yourself – honing your skills – the more likely you are to have incredible abilities.

Even people with not much ability can become champions – simply through application and hard work and sweat.

That, and not accepting the negative views of others.

As John McEnroe said of Ivan Lendl, “If he had any talent, he’d be a hell of a tennis player.”
It sounds disparaging, but there is a grudging respect for the amount of hard work the skinny Czech kid put into becoming a multiple major winner.

Greg Norman was a great golfer.

Lee Trevino once said of him, “If you had to have one person drive one ball, for your life, you’d choose Greg.”

He was majestic. Had trouble putting on Sundays. But unbelievable tee to green.

Greg’s burden, it seemed to me, was his enthusiasm for the game. He never seemed to want to win safe.
Even in the British Open Leading by two shots going into the last day. How many of us saw him take his driver out of the bag on the first hole – in a howling gale – and silently put our heads in our hands and weep?

It seemed to me he was supremely confident in his ability. But he felt the need to prove his immense ability every time he got near the ball.

Maybe he just never learned to keep his ego in the bag. I don’t know. I’ve never met Greg. I can only guess at his motivations. Me. I’m shit at golf. He’s won two majors. What do I know?

The lesson for all of us is to use our enthusiasm to drive our evolution – to give us the impetus to turn talent into ability – but to recognise when enthusiasm turns into excitement. When the blood starts rushing. When we pick the big six iron instead of the easy 5. When we should just take a deep breath and consider the options. Not to choose the safe option. But to choose the winning option.

And we need to learn the lesson while we’re honing our ability. When we’re starting out.

Even in business.

Use your enthusiasm for what you’re good at to drive your ambition.
But remember, you don’t have to prove how brilliant you are every time someone asks for your opinion.

Sometimes ten minutes of shutting up and listening to someone says more about your ability than half an hour of you telling them everything you know.

It’s not the talk you talk. Anyone who can read a blog can look like an expert.

It’s the walk you walk.

 

Originally published by Brand Clarity, August, 2010