Hidden Talents Among Youth (1)

1. What is talent and how do you become very good at something?

Showing talent to good performance requires a meeting of many elements. The challenge is to recognize talents and pay attention to the different elements that all influence the growth of a talent.

2. Personal characteristics

What makes one move ahead faster than the other?

Nature, innate properties. Children are born with a genetic basis that they inherit from their parents. Genes indicate an upper limit. This is how a natural selection takes place. Exceptional talents can be traced back half to genetic predisposition.

Nurture, learned properties. The discussion is no longer about nature or nurture, because we know that that is far too simplistic. The debate has shifted from or / or to and / and. Nature and nurture constantly play a subtle game, with many variables and all kinds of complex rules.

Talent has a hereditary basis and is subsequently expressed on the basis of environment.

The following crucial elements determine your character: 'the Big Five'

• extraversion versus introversion;
• calm versus unrest;
• conservative versus innovative;
• disorderly versus orderly;
• dominant versus accommodating.

The following character traits support top performances:

• self confidence;
• locus of control (place it with yourself or your environment);
• anxiety control.

3. Training

Nobody can shine in anything without practice. This involves both the amount of time you invest in that exercise process and the way you train.

Quantity. The 10,000 hour rule applies to all kinds of disciplines, from sports to programming. Research shows that the minimum level of training is around 10,000 hours. That is what excellence requires in performing a complex task.

Quality. The 'deliberate practice' must meet very high standards:

• that which must be learned is clearly defined;
• the training tasks match the level of the learner;
• there must be a possibility for repetition;
• it is possible to make mistakes;
• there is good feedback.

"We have to get rid of" you have it or you do not have it "- Remy Rikker

4. Motivation as a condition to move forward

Where does the motivation come from to make an effort?

Scientists distinguish between:

• intrinsic and extrinsic motivation;
• learning motivation and performance motivation;
• fixed or growth mindset.

There are three reasons why in current education it has become more difficult to motivate students:

1. We deepen less than before;
2. Young people are less inclined to adults;
3. The number of stimuli has increased dramatically.

Motivation can be promoted by giving compliments. Do not compliment with intelligence but challenge to work hard. It is the art that the environment causes something in young people, so that they better understand their motives.

5. Parents and educators: the crucial factor?

How can the environment support talent development? Parents are crucial in stimulating or inhibiting the predisposition of their children. Nobody excels without support from the environment. Who give framework to young people:

• home;
• school;
• peers;
• other educators.

Parents with children living at home from 0 to 17 in this order find orientations important in education:

• autonomy;
• assertiveness;
• social feeling;
• conformity;
• performance.

Performance scores the lowest. Parents want to know if children have had fun at school. If we want 'to raise the bar' they will have to ask: "What did you learn today?"

Tips for parents:

1. Teach your child to think in terms of personal growth.
2. Help your child discover what talents it has.
3. Give feedback and motivate your child based on his or her commitment.
4. Prevent your child from just doing one thing monomaan.
5. Teach your child self-regulation.
6. Provide guidance and support.
7. Offer inspiration.
8. Form a team.
9. Learn perseverance.
10. Discuss the framework in advance and evaluate how it went.

*Taken from the book 'Talent Binnenstebuiten'