Hi Simon,

I have my own theory - which is, that each one of us already IS "somebody"....

I didn't get this out of some motivational book or audio tape. I got it from my parents....

When I was a kid, my parents told me repeatedly - "You can be or do anything you want to".

They instilled a "can do" attitude in me. And I believed what they told me.

So if I wanted to do something - I went after it. I believed I "could do" it.

Without that belief in myself, I don't think I would have tried half the things I've tried....

Now, is this belief really true? I don't believe in it literally to the same degree I may have as a kid.... For example, my chances of becoming a star basketball player are probably quite slim, since I'm just of average height, and already a bit on the old side for professional sports!

However, I do believe that each one of us does have talents which we do better than most other people. For some, those talents could be in sports. For others, they could be in mathematics. For others, it could be in their writing or teaching skills. It could be musical talent or organizational skills. But I personally do believe that EACH ONE OF US already is a "Somebody". Though it's possible you don't yet know what your special "talent" might be....

Back when I was an undergraduate student at university, I had a friend who once told me that he was envious of me because I had some mathematics skills. (And it's true - mathematics comes easier to me - it seems - than to the average person....)

We called this friend "Mase" (from his surname, "Mason").

However, when I looked at Mase, I was the one who was envious! I've never been particularly good at learning languages... In high school, French was pretty much always my worst subject.

However, Mase was a whiz with languages. He could learn to speak a new language at the drop of a hat (so it seemed to me). At the time he told me how jealous he was of my mathematics ability, he was speaking English (his native tongue), and he had already learned till fluency Japanese and Spanish! He's one of those people who new languages came so easily to....

I was envious because knowing a another language is like a "window" into another culture and another world..... Certainly something very valuable.

I wanted to get to the story of Grandma Moses. You may have heard of her - she's a well-known 20th Century American painter, I think she passed away in 1961.

However, she never created "professional" paintings until she was age 76!

To me, the story of Grandma Moses is one of the most inspirational there is. She was a simple farmer's wife until she suddenly became this artistic superstar when she was in her late 70s....

Yes, she had talent. But then, in my opinion, we ALL have talent - though for some of us, we may not know (yet) what that talent might be. Just as Grandma Moses didn't take up painting till age 76, and wasn't "discovered" till after that.

I do believe, however, that every single person who visits this forum can probably do SOMETHING much better than I can do. So in this way, you're all more talented than I am.

And similarly, there are certain things which I can do quite well - certainly better than average. We all have talents.

For me, it comes down to what my parents taught me. So, I personally don't care what the pop psychologists and gurus have to say or not say - the formula my parents gave me I believe is a success formula for life.

If you set your mind to it - you can do it. Having a "can do" attitude is the most important part of it....

Just my opinion. :)

- Dien Rice


The story of Grandma Moses - read it!