Are You Genetically Doomed?

by Cari Cole

Ever wonder – if you don’t come out of the cradle wailing like Etta James or Adele – whether you are superstar material or destined for a life of coming up short?

Most people come from the perspective that you either have it or you don’t and there’s not much you can do about it.

But as it turns out, there are two mindsets.

One says you are born that way, and one says you acquire abilities.

From being in the entertainment business and being someone who fosters and nurtures talent every day, and becoming a musician at the age of 6, I have to say that I’ve repeatedly seen it both ways. The former is a rare breed, and most talent is cultivated and harvested.

Overall, I notice that some basic qualities are inherent, but a good percentage is acquired over years of technique, hard work, and hair pulling.

And then there are all those stories you hear about brilliant, accomplished people who failed repeatedly, until they didn’t.

In Carol Dreck’s book, Mindset, she says that, “Darwin and Tolstoy were considered ordinary children.” And did you know that Einstein, Thomas Edison, David Geffen, Quentin Tarantino, George Bernard Shaw, and the director of Lord of the Rings all didn’t finish high school (among many others) – and the main reason was “boredom.”

The long list of music artists and actors that fail before they strike gold is staggering – and when you think of it – inspiring as heck! Alanis Morrisette went through several growing stages before she met producer Glen Ballard and wrote Jagged Little Pill. Lady Gaga developed on the stages of New York City honing her craft well before her image frenzy jettisoned her to fame. Katy Perry had several record deals with complete albums recorded and shelved (she started out as a Christian singer for chrissake!) before she found Dr. Luke and penned “I Kissed a Girl and I Liked It” which rose her to the top of the charts. The list goes on and on and on and on.

The message is clear: if you’re talented, don’t give up. Don’t think you don’t have to try; who knows what you could be if you did? Fear of failure stops people more than anything else – and that’s criminal. As if to say “at least if I don’t make it I can say – at least I didn’t try so hard.” Really? Is that the motto you want to live your life by?

As an eighth grader I was devastated not to land the female lead in my junior high school play (who wouldn’t want to be Nancy in Oliver after all, haha.) Made me think I wasn’t talented enough. What’s worse, I never got picked for that stuff. Thank God it didn’t keep me from pursuing my craft – it only made me work harder. Who knew I’d go on to debut my record at Carnegie Hall and get on the Grammy ballots? In hindsight, I wish it hadn’t meant so much to me not to get the role, I could have saved myself for kicking my craft into high gear? Hmm…

What about you? Were you born spouting golden notes – or have you worked at it? Or a little of both? Tell me about it here.

p.s. For an interesting read, check out the book Mindset, by Carol Dreck, on your iPad or Kindle.