I’m a serious NBA fan. I like to listen to/read a lot of stories about young players and their journeys to the NBA. When I hear these stories, I would often hear about the endless work ethic these guys have and the time and effort they put in to perfect their game. I noticed that these players would often be described as gifted players or generational talents. The way they are described makes it sound like their gift/talent is a result of their hard work and dedication, and not so much something they are born with. Growing up, I always thought being gifted or talented was about being born with certain abilities or skills considerably above average. When I first started drawing, I would always show off my work to my parents and they would compliment me by saying things like “wow you’re talented” or “you have a real gift.” Of course they were just being supportive, but this made me believe that I was born with this natural ability to draw and that because of this natural ability, I can become a great artist. Hearing these terms used differently, made me think about the concept of being gifted and being talented; their true meaning along with the similarities and differences between them. This also lead to the connection of other terms like mentality and mindset.
By definition, being talented is to have a natural aptitude or skill for something, while the definition of being gifted is to have an exceptional talent or natural ability: essentially an elevated version of talent. The definition of mentality is the characteristic attitude of mind or way of thinking of a person or group, and mindset is the established set of attitudes held by someone. Essentially, the characteristics of a mentality make up a mindset.
The reason I included mentality and mindset is because I believe there is a connection. I believe that being gifted identifies more with the mentality of an individual while being talented focuses more on the application of an individual’s mindset. Being gifted is the foundation of being talented. In an article titled “What Is The Difference Between Gifted And Talented?” By Ray Fitzgerald, it states “While a test that identifies a gifted child looks more at broad cognitive skills, testing for an academically talented child focuses on the nitty gritty these students are ones who score in the top percentiles of all students on individual subject-area tests for math, science, reading or any other topic.” This quote is stating that tests for children identified as gifted, focuses more on their mental action, tendencies, and process of understanding information while testing for talented children focuses more on them applying their smarts to different subjects.
Kobe Bryant is a perfect example of my concept of mentality and mindset. Kobe Bryant was a professional NBA player that spent his entire 20 year career on the Los Angeles Lakers. Besides the successful career he had, one aspect about him that he will always be remembered for was his “Mamba Mentality” (Black Mamba was his nickname). In an excerpt of his book, it states “When it came to basketball, I had no fear. What I mean by that is: if I wanted to implement something new into my game, I’d see it and try incorporating it immediately. I wasn’t scared of missing, looking bad, or being embarrassed. That’s because I always kept the end result, the long game, in my mind…” Bryant breaks down and describes different characteristics of his mentality. He explains how he was never in fear of losing or failing. He didn’t care if he looked bad or felt embarrassed. He explains how eager he was; he had the urge to constantly learn and apply new material. He also explained how focused he was; he stay focused and keep his long term goal in sight. Another characteristic that wasn’t directly stated was his high work ethic which kind of glued everything together. All of these characteristics, among others unmentioned, built the foundation of his mindset which, when applied, made him the generational talent he was. Kobe had the mentality of being the best version he could possibly be.
In addition to my concept of mentality and mindset, there is also the idea that when an individual has a certain mindset/gift, they are able to perform or achieve certain things faster and/or at a greater level than others. However, with the right mentality, anyone can still achieve anything they desire even if it’s outside the domain of their gifts. In an article titled “Is There a Mindset Misconception with Giftedness?” By Emily Mofield, it states “The buzz about mindsets, what we believe about our intelligence, has captivated parents and educators in recent years. Its message is powerful if you believe your intelligence can grow, you will embrace challenges and achieve more… this mighty notion of mindset can be misinterpreted. In discussions about giftedness and mindsets, there may also be misconceptions. Research about praise tells us that when we praise students for their intelligence, they are likely to develop fixed mindset beliefs—the belief that your abilities do not change and so, they are more likely to avoid challenges in order to maintain a smart identity…” This quote identifies 2 different types of mindsets, 1 being a growth mindset and 2 being a fixed mindset. A growth mindset is a mindset that regardless of any limitations, one’s intelligence can still grow and achieve more. A fixed mindset is where one believes that one can’t grow beyond the gifts they have.
The first mindset is the mindset everyone potentially has. Anyone can develop new characteristics of their mentality to accomplish things even if there are setbacks. For example, let’s say there are 2 people: person A who has is gifted with math expertise; and person B who is gifted with language arts expertise. They are both equally gifted in their own right, but what if they both are striving to become authors? Both can do so however person A will have to work harder to achieve this feat. This is because their characteristics don’t compliment the goal they’re after as well as person B. However, along the way, person A will develop their mentality to accomplish the goal they’re after.
After realizing my personal definition of mentality, mindset, gifts, and talents; I’ve also realized that people are way more capable than they know. Anything is achievable regardless of the gifts or talents they have as long as right amount of work and effort is put in. Anyone can truly surpass their own limitations.
