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Talent is Never Enough

Guest post by: Dan Miller

Article Overview: I have been dumbfounded recently by running into several long-time acquaintances who are down on their luck. These are guys who were used to first class all the way – restaurants, cars, private flights, yachts and houses. And now they have been dealing with selling clothes on eBay to pay the apartment rent, parking the car because gas is too expensive, and eating at McDonalds.

Talent is Never Enough

I have been dumbfounded recently by running into several long-time acquaintances who are down on their luck. These are guys who were used to first class all the way – restaurants, cars, private flights, yachts and houses. And now they have been dealing with selling clothes on eBay to pay the apartment rent, parking the car because gas is too expensive, and eating at McDonalds.

My assumption has always been that if someone has never gotten off the ground they may not know how. But once someone is “up” they can bounce back again quickly even if a real estate swing or bad investment strategy caught them unprepared.

But why would a guy that like get trapped in a “down” position and seem to stay there?

I began researching, asking and studying to see if there were any common factors. I pulled a 2007 John Maxwell book off my shelf and read it again –Talent is Never Enough. John says “a person’s talent allows them to stand out, but their wrong choices make them sit down”. I was reminded how character, integrity, relationships and responsibility are the pillars that allow talent to shine. And without those the shining talent is very vulnerable. I grieve for my friends who are down and am harshly reminded myself of the importance of not leaning too strongly on talent in my own life. Unless I’m making deposits of success in character, integrity and relationships, I could find myself holding a tin cup full of pencils. How much of a factor has “talent” been to your success?

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Article Tags: business startup, character, failure, integrity, john maxwell, relationships, talent



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