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 [...]
Many multitalented people feel inspired and energized to pursue multiple creative projects, often at the same time. One potential downside is physical and emotional burnout. Jennifer Westfeldt wrote, produced and acted in “Kissing Jessica Stein” and “Ira & Abby.” For her new movie “Friends With Kids,” she not only wrote the screenplay, acted and produced (along [...]
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.” [...]
The ‘gifted’ label & the pressure to deliver In his book “Your Own Worst Enemy..”, psychologist Kenneth W. Christian, PhD delineates some of the most prominent patterns of thinking and behavior he has found that may lead to undermining and underachievement as adults. “Without explicit demands and support, being labeled ‘bright’ or ‘gifted’ is akin [...]
By Lisa Erickson, MS, LMHC Lisbeth Salander is the fictional heroine of Steig Larsson’s trilogy The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, The Girl Who Played with Fire and The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet’s Nest. As the heroine, Lisbeth Salander embodies certain characteristics of giftedness, and these characteristics help her survive terrible, long-term physical, sexual [...]
“I still have pretty much the same fears I had as a kid. I’m not sure I’d want to give them up; a lot of these insecurities fuel the movies I make.” Steven Spielberg There can be many flavors of insecurity, self-criticism, stress and anxiety related to being gifted, talented and creative. Some experiences, such [...]
Ashley Judd commented in a 2006 interview about dealing with her challenging early life: “I try to remind myself that if I engage in perfectionism, I am abusing myself.” That comment is especially poignant with the release of her new memoir, in which she reveals being sexually abused. In this video from the Today Show, [...]
By Lisa Erickson, MS, LMHC I’ve been thinking about varieties of perfectionism since having a discussion with a gifted trauma survivor. It became clear that some of their perfectionism was an expression of giftedness and some was related to family of origin issues. Same outcome, different sources. Does the source of perfectionism matter? I think [...]
British schoolgirl Victoria Cowie recently scored 162 on the adult admission tests for Mensa, which places her above the scores thought to have been achieved by Albert Einstein, Stephen Hawking and Bill Gates. Her father cites one example showing how uncommon she is: “When she was just three years old we were sitting in a [...]
Mia Wasikowska portrayed troubled, suicidal teen gymnast Sophie in the outstanding HBO psychotherapy drama series “In Treatment.” In an interview, Wasikowska (pronounced vash-i-kov-ska) commented, “As a teenager I was very anxious. I had a lot of energy and passion that I wanted to channel into creative things, and I always felt like I wasn’t achieving [...]
Her presence and depth in acting at age 13 in “The Professional” were amazing, and Natalie Portman continues to grow stronger and more compelling as an outstanding actor. But beyond that, it is intriguing to read about how exceptional she is in other ways. Here are excerpts from several publications about her educational and other [...]
By Deborah Ruf, Ph.D. How can we better encourage and reinforce the most entrepreneurial and talented among us? We can start by changing the ways we set up schools and the ways we address the very different learning abilities and needs of the students in them. The well-known “achievement gap” refers to the difference in [...]
By Willem Kuipers – From a section of his book “Enjoying the Gift of Being Uncommon.” One of the greatest obstacles to the recognition of extra intelligent people is the mysterious qualities and extreme rarity that many people (including parents) associate with “uncommon intelligence.” Often it is either a kind of child-prodigy–assumption, like Mozart, or [...]
Willem Kuipers is author of the book Enjoying the Gift of Being Uncommon: Extra Intelligent, Intense, and Effective. Read the Foreword by Linda Silverman (and see link to the author’s site) in the post The Gift of Being Uncommon. In a section of the book – Is it a Gift to be Uncommon? – he [...]
By Edith Johnston I have lots of ideas. I am intelligent and inquisitive with lots of interests. Yet, I am insecure and everything seems incongruent as I move through life. Does this sound like something you experience? Being a multi-talented individual, or said another way, a smart person, can lead to this kind of experience. [...]
Video excerpts from the SENGinar (a webinar by SENG): “Understanding Overexcitabilities – The Joys and the Challenges” Presented by Susan Daniels, PhD – January 31, 2011 Description from the SENG site: Overexcitabilites – psychomotor, sensual, intellectual, imaginational and emotional – are often presented as personality traits and behaviors to be managed in terms of interactions [...]
By Lisa Erickson, MS, LMHC : The caller says they went to my website and started to cry. I have heard this reaction before. It isn’t because they read the page on addictions or the one on depression. There is only one page that evokes this response. The caller has read about giftedness on my [...]
Site author: Douglas Eby, M.A./Psychology, is a writer and researcher on creative expression and personal growth, especially for high ability adults. He is creator and publisher of the Talent Development Resources series of sites, and author of the book Developing Multiple Talents - The personal side of creative expression.
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