Mule

"You are so talented!" This is probably the number one comment given to makers-of-things, and probably players-of-instruments as well. Talent.  I think talent is used like 'miracle' is used.  There is talent and there are miracles, but things that impress you or amaze you are not automatically either. Ten year olds playing Chopin are talented. I'll get into the work side of things in a bit, and a 10 year playing Chopin has put in a great deal of work, but they havn't been around that long.  They are able to learn and progress faster than most of the thousands of other kids putting in the same amount of time over the same amount of years.   16 year old Olympic weightlifters clean and jerking 400 lbs: talent.  There is a time constraint there and out of the hundreds of teenage olympic weightlifters given the same amount of time and training, there are only a couple who can do it. But talent is also an illusion.  Anytime someone is proficient at their chosen path they are labeled 'talented'.  It's a way of identifying people who can do things we can't do.  I can look through my life and see different experiences teaching me things that have allowed me to get to making these guitars for people.   It didn't just happen because I progressed faster than other people.  I don't need to go into my 14 years of struggle so far trying to make guitars, but I need to tell you it was a struggle and continues to be.  Some days I am ok,  some days I can mark things within a 1/64th of an inch by eye- but most days I need to keep at it until it's right.  It's important for me to say that to you because I think talent can be a lie we tell ourselves as an excuse.  "They  are so talented!" turns into "I wish I was talented at something" and nothing can hamstring ambition like a feeling like the starting gun went off and you were in the concession line.  A large quantity of work done every day regardless of attitude done over years- that is the 'secret'. I'm not here to say 'make your dream your career'. I think all work can be good work. And there is a lot more in play with a career change than just doing the production work.   I think our life experiences and who we are set us up to be proficient at certain things.  Find that thing.  I'm not naturally proficient at this but my life experience has made me stubbornly persistent and enjoy the struggle. I've had experiences that proved that to myself, it wasn't a self-opinion. I'm bad at just about everything, but I'm persistent and that is my badge of honor. The next time you see someone 'talented', think of the hours put in. The decisions made, the sacrifices of the people around them that helped them along the way.  Think of the piles of junk they made or bad songs they put out.  That's far more impressive, important, and inspirational than talent.