Natural Talent

From the Hezicos Tarot, the Eight of Coins; from the Way of the Horse, Dharma's Reflection:

          Griffin suggests the meaning of this card is an encouragement to "explore your natural talents." Now when I think of a person with natural talents, I imagine someone who learns more quickly and makes progress at a rapid pace. Yet research published in the British Journal of Psychology found some surprising results in a study of music students. The more accomplished musicians did not learn quicker than anyone else. In fact only one thing predicted how proficient the students were - how much they practiced. Maybe we should redefine natural talent as how much we enjoy doing something. Doing what we love does makes us more readily embrace the study and training needed to learn the skills.
          In this image of one horse reflected in another's eye, Kohanov writes, "looking honestly at how we respond in relationship provides a deeper glimpse of who we are than any mirror... if we simply become curious about how we react in certain situations, and why, we quite naturally begin to change those patterns." Applying this to learning a new skill set, I can see how comparing myself to others leads me to alternate between blame and shame. I may excuse my lack of discipline by saying I don't have time, or I may sing an "I'm not worthy" chant. Neither is conducive to helping me learn more or increase my proficiency. What I do need to do is practice.