Learning | Talent
Are Talent and Skill the Same?
Can they be learned?
This is part of an ongoing series about the nature of talent and creativity. Read all of the stories here.
Recently, I performed at a concert where this kid blew everyone away. After playing his instrument for only 18 months, he was able to pull things off that long-time guitarists aren’t able to (like myself).
It’s amazing how far he has come in such a short time. I remember seeing him 8 months before this concert and he was just learning how to play some Green Day songs. Those aren’t overly complicated and beginners can pick up the songs after learning power chords — a relatively easy technique that every guitarist learns.
That kid got me thinking: are talent and skill the same?
I’ve said it myself that they are inherently the same. That it just takes time and practice to become good at something.
But does it?
No. They’re related but they’re not interchangeable.
Talent describes one’s ability to learn.
Skill describes the ability to perform what is learned.
