I've had people tell me "I can't draw", "I have no musical talent", "I suck at Dancing/writing/science", and on and on. When I talk to people about how to move forward, the next line is something like "I just don't have the talent."

Talent. That magical thingy that people believe they do/don't have

I'm not going to tell you talent isn't real. I've met kids who were born with perfect pitch and could teach themselves to play an instrument just by listening. But I will tell you two things:

1. True talent like that is rare
2. When you are that talented, it often makes that very thing boring.

If you are bored by something, you won't work at it. It's just there. So stop worrying about the talents you think you may or may not have.

Here are some true stories about me:

1. I was so bad at music my teachers actually told me that they weren't sure I could be taught.
2. I wasn't tough and got bullied like crazy when I was young and thought I was weak.
3. I drew like crazy as a kid, then went to art school and found out I still sucked compared to my peers.

Now here are some true stories about me today:

1. I've toured as a guitarist and closed shows as a singer in the USA and Asia.
2. I got into martial arts and won some local tournaments
3. I became a concept artist for a video game company, and then years later was invited by the world champions to help with a bodypainting competition.

So was I talented or not?

That's the funny thing, talent isn't singular thing. I had horrible pitch accuracy as a singer at the beginning, but ended up having a massive tenor voice that was fantastic. Even in the same field you can be "talented" or "not talented" depending on perspective. A singer in an old band of mine wanted to sing 80s rock, but had a raspy voice that was killer for blues.

It's not about being talented or not. It's about figuring out what your strengths are and then putting in the WORK to connect and strengthen it all.

Being talented is more like going to the gym than being born with magic.

Yes, some people get all the magic genetics. But everyone can lift weights and get stronger. And while not everyone will be able to be on the cover of muscle magazine or something, you don't need to. Putting the work in will make you better than 99% of the populace because they sit around thinking they aren't talented and then doing nothing at all.

The real truth people say they aren't talented

Because it's an exit. It makes them unaccountable for chasing their dreams. If it wasn't ever possible to begin with, then they don't have to feel guilty about not trying.

How to get "talented" at almost anything.

Intelligent, dedicated, practice. Note that I didn't say "just practice". I spent years not getting better at guitar because I practiced the same stuff instead of building my skills intelligently. This is the real key to massive improvement. In fact, if you follow these steps you can get shockingly good at almost ANYTHING in under 2 years.

1. Pick the thing you want to be good at.
2. Research the people who are experts at that skill, see how they trained and learned.
3. Break the skill down into pieces. A good teacher or very experienced person can help with this.
4. Practice DAILY. It's not about hours as much as it is about consistency.
5. Each week, write down your strengths, weaknesses and what you learned.
6. The following week, work on those weeknesses.
7. Each month, change it up. E.g if learning guitar, take scales you use for metal and try to make them sound like the blues.
8. Get positive, constructive feedback from people you trust not to tear you down.

If you do these 8 steps you'll get good VERY fast.

Fuck goals, use systems

Everyone has goals. Most people never achieve them. You know why? Because 'having goals' is irrelevant. I didn't set out with the goal of being connected to world champions. That just happened. I didn't set out with the goal of going to the playboy mansion either. That happened, and through events I could have NEVER EVER planned. Those things happened because I had a SYSTEM that I used for being good at art and a SYSTEM I used for networking. Goals are built on the hilarious presumption that you can influence a world that is so complex you can't comprehend it and somehow map out a course through the future that will land you in some precise spot.

Me at Playboy

Sometimes this works, but most of the time it just blinds you to all the unsuspecting opportunities surrounding you. So don't use goals except in the vaguest way possible or in the smallest way possible. Chart a general direction, an overall vibe, and then let the system help you soar. If you have a goal, it should be small and you should KNOW the route to it (see having a system). Small goals are the guideposts of a successful system. Big goals often end up as just talk.

I've given the 8 steps for getting better at a skill above. Once you have skills, you can use other systems to make them work for you.

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