What does it say and its origin?
Hard Work Beats Talent When Talent Doesn’t Work Hard
Now the proverb to be specific or in my opinion, I could say these the words are certainly quoted by one of the wisest and practical human to inhabit the planet. One who has this deep quote embedded in their cerebral always would have the mindset of polishing themselves in every walk of life to survive the growing competitiveness of the changing times. Although this quote is refined by many Gurus or celebrities or big names, those who preach it are actually on the level now because they have practiced the same. We definitely have heard the refined forms of the same quote, but as you say that all the roads lead to the same destination, the same case is here. Being a massive fan of sports and an avid viewer of various documentaries and interviews of the sportsmen. I discovered a quote mentioned under Kevin Durant (KD), the Washington-born Brooklyn Nets basketball player. But after digging deep, I got to know that this exactly is stated by many but highly influential when said by the international basketball player.
The quote superficially is like a pretty straightforward thing to say and comprehend but what lies deep beyond is the implementation of the quote in actuality.
How can it be broken down individually with an instance?
Hard work and talent are two separate entities as we all are hip to it, and over the years, people label some people as born talents and some as the product of their relentless hard work. This has somehow given both the words an antithetical approach and is based on the comparison and has been a controversial topic. But to think meticulously, is it that people with innate talent/s or commands over specific sectors do not work hard? Do they rely on the talent, acknowledging it as the X factor to gain success in life?
For instance, people always compare two great football giants- Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo, where Messi is always given a tag of being born with the talent of playing football. In contrast, Ronaldo has worked hard throughout his career and is standing toe to toe with other recognized alpha males of the Football Kingdom. But have you ever thought that if Messi would have just relied on his talent and would have been gassed up by the praise he receives and kicked back, wondering the talent always would have done the thing and wonders for him, let me tell you he would have been done and dusted until now neither had he been in the position where upcoming aspirants would have looked up to him and idolized him?
And as far as hard work is concerned, if the people witness the hustling period and the person himself would believe in cashing in his blood, sweat, and tears, the rightful word that would be placed before success for him would be earned and not gain and this is where the things come down to splitting hairs as we could say in the case of Ronaldo. This is one of the best examples to put forth.
What both the halves summarize to explain: ‘Hard Work Beats Talent When Talent Doesn’t Work Hard‘
It has always been an art of genius people to understand the slick things by splitting them up and assembling them as a whole by uniting the pieces. So if we are aware of the minutest and the most elementary element, it remains forever in our muscle memory. The first half says- ‘Hard work beats talent’ & the second half says- ‘if talent fails to work hard’ simply put, talent is a raw piece of steel, and we could say hard work is the bladesmith. He is the one instrumental in forging the disfigured steel into a deadly double-edged sword. And if there is no bladesmith, the piece of steel is just another unwanted material tossed in the junk. At the same time, the amount of hard work also plays a very major role in continuing the same example. A bladesmith should know how to forge a sword with a strong and sharp edge depending upon how much soul he has invested in making it. If he half-heartedly does, so it all defeats the purpose of being a bladesmith which implies that if one hasn’t given it all to the craft he wants to be master of, he would always lag and be surpassed by someone else.
A very relatable example in which we all can draw inspiration- The music and the film industries. Some celebrities, including actors, musicians, and singers, turn out to be the hot potato and the topic of discussion based on one piece of work they release, which actually is a threshold of their pavement to success. Still, all they end up being are one-hit wonders because they had a conception of living off of the status they achieved, notwithstanding the factors like other hustlers, competition, cooperation, etc. They all face a backlash. We are not unknown to the terrifying facts that they lose recognition and make a living shouldered by repenting their slackened approach and not honing the extra edge needed to slice through. Later they remain stuck in an ordinary job.
There is a very high possibility where the suppressed talent could also be extracted by immense hard work, which means hard work functions as a key to unlock the concealed potential, which is vice-versa to the facts stated above. The interesting one holds to integrate both is very vital. But if a skill-set is a product of sheer and mere hard work, one, in my opinion, could beat a person who holds the talent in the same area. This because a relentless hustler has a goal in mind to be crowned as king and always is down to earth because he esteems what he has been through the rough and stormy times like the weather, whereas the person who is fresh out of talent and luck he would be raw. He would lack consistency because he would be spending his time being on cloud nine rather than exploring his gray areas and filling those with the colors of technique improvisation and getting back on their feet after being knocked down while slogging. So to direct the train of thought towards the tunnel where we could see the light and the junction where it would stop is hard work. It clearly tips the scales, and we have seen that people nowadays, people based on their skills and desire to invest all of their effort in something that interests them. It always remains parallel to the satisfaction of the individual as well. This doesn’t deny that talented people don’t stand a chance but their lack of experience and less certainty to do something beyond what is required makes it a point to be looked into.
My personal opinion:
Although I’d say that talent and hard work play their own part depending upon the exhibition of dominance within an individual, consider them as raw clay to be molded completely. There is no half-stepping. But a very strong belief that I hold is hard work definitely could overpower talent in every respect. This is because a hard-working person will always determine his own destiny knowing the fact that he has to develop the skills to go toe to toe with already who possess the talent to do it, which makes it easy for them and the hard workers know in and out about the number of brick-walls they are ought to run through. They always respect their mark, they know their origin, which is why their legacy lives, and people draw inspiration from them compared to those who have had achieved their status based on talent or talent with something extra combined. But I guess the center is the resolve and the will that lies within. The only thing needed is an immaculate conception, perspective far-sightedness, and proper channelization.
The conclusion is that if one has talent and he/she recognizes it, I guess one gets to know his worth. But if he/she knows how to stitch a solid bond between talent and hard work required becoming an epitome of authenticity and dignity, mind you, that person would discover the strongest indestructible arsenal along with his/her purpose in life.
POETRY SUMMING UP THE QUOTE (ORIGINAL COMPOSITION):
If talent is affluence, hard-work is priceless,
Making every drop of sweat count dropping down your eyelids,
The former gives you the status the latter makes you the wisest,
The time thee invest makes your legacy timeless.
The two unbeatable forces, when they are made to combine,
The darkest nook of life shimmers as bright as sunshine,
But if talent works one time and hard work is undermined,
The first one will leave you dead when you are alive,
Second would be your rebirth when you are done dying.
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