Is Talent Enough?

I recently read an article about professional baseball player, Tim Lincecum. The San Francisco Giants pitcher is coming off his first full season in the majors, one that saw him win the Cy Young Award as well as lead the league in strikeouts.

This is phenomenal success for a young player but I was surprised that the article included several quotes where Lincecum talks about not doing much to warm up his arm, hardly stretches, and doesn't ice his arm after games. These are all time honored practices for pitchers. Perhaps the 24 year old is a true physical freak who can pitch more than 100 mph without any of the usual wear and tear on his arm.

But will he be the exception. This may be a case of a someone who relies too much on talent. I've heard countless older athletes (by older I mean late 30s), who talk of relying too much on physical skills when they were younger, instead of learning the mental side of the game. They admit had they combined the two at an earlier age, they would have been more successful.

Very often I've see people who have a talent but never look to develop beyond it. Talent only takes you so far. The desire to improve ultimately trumps talent in that there is a ceiling in terms of how good you can be with just your natural abilities. The same principle applies in the office as it does the athletic field.

Take some time to think what you naturally do well. Now imagine if that talent magically disappeared, what would you do? Perhaps the true greats see talent as a starting point for a never ending journey of self improvement.