“She can be quite murderously challenging in her perfectionism. Take Twenty: ‘Are you sure that’s good enough?’ [Kidman says.] “We’re going, [wearily] ‘Yeah.’ ” Director Jane Campion about working with Nicole Kidman on “Portrait of a Lady” Campion also said of her: “She gets a bee in her bonnet, and she’s off. She’s excited. And [...]
Being exceptional may cause a variety of reactions; some of those responses are supportive, but others can discourage or discount one’s talents. “I got that whole precocious thing [as a child]. I had no reason to doubt my own abilities or not share my opinion. The adults were offended, and the kids were resentful. I was [...]
Prevalent among gifted and sensitive adults In a post on his HSP Notes blog – Of Giftedness, ADD, Depression, and being an HSP – Peter Messerschmidt writes, “Existential Depression.. generally doesn’t affect many people, except in a very fleeting and vague manner. “However, it is extremely prevalent among highly gifted sensitive adults. It’s pervasive, non-specific, [...]
Even people with exceptional talents can feel insecure and struggle with low or unhealthy self-esteem. Meryl Streep, for example, has said, “I have varying degrees of confidence and self-loathing…. “You can have a perfectly horrible day where you doubt your talent… Or that you’re boring and they’re going to find out that you don’t know [...]
Suppressing ourselves to fit in Being exceptional, unusually skillful, smart, creative or otherwise more capable than the norm, may include a judgment both by others and ourselves as being an ‘outsider.’ Gifted and talented people can experience a self-defeating aversion to expressing talents that might separate them from other people. Girls and women may be [...]
By Emilie Wapnick Today’s post is a personal one. It’s something I’ve wanted to talk about for a long time. I’ve written before about my experiences with childhood bullying. It’s something that a lot of multipotentialites seem to have experienced (apparently when you do origami at recess and play violin in an orchestra, other kids [...]
“There are many confusing notions about what giftedness is and is not. Indeed, in several respects, the life experience of the gifted individual seems paradoxical (e.g., being considered highly successful while secretly feeling like an impostor).” From article Encountering the Gifted Self Again, For the First Time, by Mary-Elaine Jacobsen, Psy.D. In another article, Dr. [...]
Lily Cole gained acclaim as a model, is an ambassador for the Body Shop, an actor (“Snow White and the Huntsman”), and last year achieved the academic honor of a Double First in History of Art from Cambridge University. The Wikipedia page notes she supports a variety of humanitarian and environmental causes. and “is passionate [...]
Being highly intelligent can impact social and sexual relationships for many people, growing up and as adults. The character ‘Dr. Lisa Cuddy’ on the tv series “House” finds Dr. House (Hugh Laurie) “hot.” The actor who plays Cuddy, Lisa Edelstein, was asked if she would you be attracted “to a guy like him” and replied, [...]
By Emilie Wapnick The other day, someone mentioned that throughout their life, they’ve used their multipotentialite pursuits as a way of growing their confidence. In other words, by diving into new things and acquiring new skills, they’ve learned to believe in themselves more as a person. I’ve never thought about it that way, but it [...]
By Mariana Ashley Bill Bradley, retired NBA player, US Senator, and US presidential candidate, said “Ambition is the path to success. Persistence is the vehicle you arrive in.” Any high-ability student knows the truth of this quote, as they have likely received accolades, awards, and praise for their efforts and ambitions. But these students also [...]
Video: You think you’re so smart. A number of movies include gifted and talented characters, and depict a variety of characteristics that are positive and relate to exceptional abilities, but also can generate not so positive reactions – such as “You think you’re so smart,” or, “You’re too verbal… too bossy… too nerdy… too sensitive.” [...]
One of the myths of high ability, multitalented people is they can choose whatever personal and career paths they want, and realize their abilities without hindrance. It doesn’t always work out that way. From post: Multipotentiality: multiple talents, multiple challenges."Since all the pressure helped me become a world-famous star musician, which I love being, I would say that, for me, it was in the end a wonderful way to grow up.” — From post: Lang Lang: “Pressure…but a wonderful way to grow up”
Site author: Douglas Eby, M.A./Psychology, is a writer and researcher on the psychology of creative expression and personal growth, especially for high ability adults.
Author of books:
• Developing Multiple Talents
• The Creative Mind: Identity
• Being Highly Sensitive and Creative
For more info, see Résumé.
Developing Multiple Talents: The personal side of creative expression.
is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.