Talent and Genius

Talent hits a target no one else can hit; Genius hits a target no one else can see.- Arthur Schopenhauer

I was thinking about how I could describe him in one sentence...

This was a challenge that he routinely gave me...

To describe myself in one succinct sentence...

"Describing yourself in one sentence is something you should be prepared to do on an ongoing basis..." he would admonish...

"The unexamined life is not worth living..."

"A clear understanding of yourself is critical..."

"...If you can not do it...you are traveling too generally..."

I had been reveling over being called "Renaissance man" in the latest annual corporate newsletter and in the annual report!  For me it was quite an honor...

That is...until he burst into my office and immediately sat...holding a copy open to the same article...

"What have they done to you?" he declared...

"I have to do something about it...this calls for immediate action..."

"What the heck are you talking about?" I asked, "By the way...do you want my autograph?"

"My friend...this is an insult...You are good...in some aspects...unmatched...but this is an insult..."

"Settle down!" I interrupted, "Let's talk through this and not make a harsh move!"

He stopped mid sentence...took a breath and sat quietly for a few moments...I think he was awaiting a path of questioning...so I obliged him"

"When I read the article...I took it as a major compliment to be recognized as a multi-talented individual...I thought that they didn't see it...Look the quality and process training is recognized...and my work with their computers...and my engineering work with vacuum and lasers...my managerial and leadership skills...man the list is awesome...what is wrong with that?"

"There are too many sentences...a generalist is what I read...someone who can do whatever is needed...but..."

I seldom heard him use the word "but" and it was most often when he was no choosing his words wisely...

He leaned forward in his chair..."This is a matter of passion and capability..."

"You my friend have discovered the interconnectedness of all things...and have been able to connect what you know...with what you do not...this is a rare gift..."

"This organization has misread your ability and talent...you are singly talented and it appears as multiple talents..."

"You may appear as an expert in all of these things and many more...but it simply because you can grasp the essence of any new endeavor and relate it to what you already know..."

"That is passion and talent my friend...not expertise!  You should not allow that to deceive you!"

"If you were an expert...it would be easy...talent is passion + action"

"You work for what you get...and that is not demeaning...it is a compliment...that is what they should be writing about...not a natural expertise...that is all about luck...you are a worker that does not give up...you are persistent and will do whatever is necessery to achieve your goals..."

"If I were to describe you in one sentence...you are a person of passion and capability"

"They could have saved a ton of money on ink...if they would have simply talked to me first..."

For one of the first times in my life...I felt both elated and deflated...

I had aspired to be recognized...but I realized that recognition needs to be in a singularity...not in complexity!

His one sentence personal definition took on a deeper meaning than I ever fathomed possible...and this lead to more questions...all related to the depth of everything that he tried to show me...

Perhaps I need to reflect on all of them...and seek an understanding that is less superficial and...

"You look like you just entered another dimension,"  he snickered...

"I think that I have!" I responded

"I just realized how much depth those things, that we have been talking about, possess...all of them have that in common..."

"And that my friend is what you are good at...connecting everything that I have taught you...by their common elements...you are no Renaissance man...you are more!"

"I love it when you compliment me...you can do that whenever you want!"

"NOPE!  Only when you have earned it!"

"That is many times...the only payment that one receives for passion and capability"

"So what sentence would you describe me with?"

"I was just thinking about that...and I ran out of words!"