What is the true meaning behind being gifted and being talented?
A question to ponder to all viewers on this Subreddit.
There are two ways I’ve seen the terms gifted and talented being used:
- Associated with possessing a natural born ability/skill.
- Result of high work ethic, fearlessness, determination, and other attributes alike.
When I was growing up, my parents would call me “gifted” or “talented” whenever they would see my drawings (they were just being nice). It gave me the impression that being “gifted” or “talented” meant having some special natural ability. In other cases, I hear stories about successful people would be called those terms get praise for their hard work and dedication. So what does being gifted and talented really mean?
Google’s definition is this:
- Being talented is to have a natural aptitude or skill for something.
- Being gifted is to have an exceptional talent or natural ability.
Essentially, being gifted is like an upgraded version of being talented.
Before I get to my definition, I want to define mentality and mindset.
- Mentality is the characteristic attitude of mind or way of thinking of a person or group.
- Mindset is the established set of attitudes held by someone.
Essentially, the characteristics of a mentality makes 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.
I decided to look up any instances where those terms were being used. There’s an article titled “What Is The Difference Between Gifted And Talented?” By Ray Fitzgerald who was an elementary school teacher. He spoke about how he’d answer a question similar to this one, what he told parents, and the purpose behind different tests. I’m focusing on what he said about the test.
“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.”
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.
One person that came up in my research is Kobe Bryant. He’s one person that if you didn’t watch basketball you would still hear his name and that’s because of his “Mamba Mentality.” He’s the type of person that gives his all in everything he tries. In his book “Inside the Mamba Mentality” he goes into depth with his attitude and approach to challenges he faced.
“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…”
Kobe breaks down the different characteristics of his mentality and how it played a part in him practicing to get better. His fearlessness, eagerness, and focus, where all aspects that contributed to the foundation of his mindset, leading him to become the 18x All-Star, 5x Champ, League MVP, and overall great person he was.
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.
One interesting article I found is titled “Is There a Mindset Misconception with Giftedness?” by Emily Mofield. It speaks about the concept of mindset and growth of intelligence as well as a common misconception about them.
“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 article identifies 2 mindsets:
- Growth mindset – being a mindset where one believes in growth of intelligence; expansion of their mentality.
- Fixed mindset – where one believe they can’t grow beyond the mentality they have. I believe people can break out of this fixed mindset. People can add to their mentality.
Let’s make up a hypothetical situation: 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, as long as person A keeps a growth mindset and believes that they can complete their goal, they will.
So what do you think? Do you agree? Disagree? What are your thoughts on the meaning behind gifted and talented? Comment below.
