High Ability

Annemarie Roeper provides exquisite insightful into a central task for all humans, that of “carving out a place that is known, a place that we can manage, a place that is safe, a place that allows us to grow our unique selves.” She defines this as our struggle for psychic survival. Our gifted children face this on a daily basis in every aspect of their lives and in all environments.

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More quotes by Roeper: "Gifted adults may be overwhelmed by the pressure of their own creativity. The gifted derive enormous satisfaction from the creative process..." - From post An Intense Inner Pressure to Create  http://blogs.psychcentral.com/creative-mind/2012/02/an-intense-inner-pressure-to-create/

Many children get bullied, love to read and create, feel insecure, but these experiences may be exceptionally intense for gifted and creative children...

"Certainly the first story I ever wrote down (when I was five or six) was about a rabbit called Rabbit...And since that time, I have wanted to be a writer, though I rarely told anyone so. I was afraid they’d tell me I didn’t have a hope.”

The World Council for Gifted and Talented Children and the International Week of the Gifted 2012 / International Year of Giftedness and Creativity 2013- It has been a while since this blog touched o...

Society would benefit if more people could contribute their unique gifts daily. Few people get to play to their strengths most of the time.

By Marie-Josée Salvas, Positive Psychology News Daily..

A good friend of mine could be the next Martha Stewart. In fact, let’s call her Martha. Martha loves to cook and does it beautifully...Martha is equally talented at home design...she can also help just about any lady plan a make-over, including hair, make-up or clothing style...But it’s a real shame to see her go to the same federal office day after day so she can send emails, make photocopies, stamp paperwork, and align numbers in the right columns.

Though he received a MacArthur Foundation “genius” grant for his work in paleontology, Christopher Beard doesn’t consider himself a wunderkind or believe he was genetically predestined for success.

Not entirely, anyway.

Dr. Beard said he had his parents’ guidance, along with their genes. He’s worked industriously to make a mark in his profession. And he believes that serendipity has been on his side.

Psychologist Kenneth W. Christian, PhD delineates patterns of thinking and behavior he has found that may lead to underachievement for adults.

He notes, “Without explicit demands and support, being labeled ‘bright’ or ‘gifted’ is akin to being conferred an aristocratic lineage — a heritage that exists independently of what you do with it.

“The difference is that the labels ‘bright’ and ‘gifted’ come with implicit demands, and when appropriate explicit demands are lacking, the labels sit there like ticking bombs.

In her book Gifted Grownups, Marylou Kelly Streznewski illuminates many of the myths and challenges of being exceptional. Here are some excerpts.

Are only the successful truly gifted?

For too long society has believed that if you aren’t president of General Motors, you aren’t gifted. If the estimates of the researchers are correct, and between 3% and 5% of the population is gifted, then we are talking about several million people.

What the interviews [in my book] revealed was that a gifted person of multiple talents may not be as fortunate as a multitalented Bill Bradley (Rhodes scholar, basketball star, senator, author). He or she may be struggling through a series of false starts into careers and college majors, trying desperately to find the one that clicks.

Nicole Kidman has talked about her personal qualities and experiences that relate to being a gifted and talented person with multiple talents.

“You live with a lot of complicated emotions as an actor, and they whirl around you and create havoc at times. …. It’s my choice, and I would rather do it this way than live to be 100. .. Or rather than choosing not to exist within life’s extremities. I’m willing to fly close to the flame.” Nicole Kidman

“Creatively gifted children and adults are emotionally intense and have rich inner lives..." Linda Kreger Silverman

Once upon a time, before she was the ultimate screen sex symbol, before she became an icon and source material for generations of writers and artists, Marilyn Monroe was a working actress.

"For somebody who the camera loved, she was still terrified of going before the camera and broke out in a rash all over her body."

'That combination of ambition, skill and fear turns up in other accounts as well.'

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Related: Marilyn Monroe: Her complex Inner Life

http://talentdevelop.com/5756/marilyn-monroe-her-complex-inner-life/

Mr. Lehrer said in a statement announcing his resignation: "The lies are over now. I understand the gravity of my position.

Todd Gitlin, a professor of journalism and sociology at Columbia, said in an interview that not only had Mr. Lehrer carved out a career in the popular niche of brain science, but he had created a persona that is perfectly suited to a 21st-century media environment.

“Conjure me up a guy who talks science winningly, who shows you that everything is transparent, and does it in a self-help-y spirit,” he said. “In our age, a guy who looks cute and wonky is better positioned to get away with this than others.”

"If you continue to aim low, you live a truncated version of your life. Like a feral child, you accommodate to a life alien to your nature, but by blending in, acquiring standards through fear or by osmosis, and adopting a kind of psychological protective coloration, you lose your essential idiosyncrasies, set aside your possibilities, and do your best to howl like the rest of the pack, while barely noticing what goes unexpressed at your core." [From the book Your Own Worst Enemy: Breaking the Habit of Adult Underachievement - by Kenneth W. Christian, PhD. http://amzn.to/qQyPqo
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Related post: Kenneth W. Christian, PhD on Adult Underachievement
http://talentdevelop.com/5133/kenneth-w-christian-phd-on-adult-underachievement/

My interview with Kathleen Noble, Ph.D., Research Associate Professor of Women's Studies, and Assistant Director of the Early Entrance Program, University of Washington in Seattle, where she also has a private practice as a psychologist, working with gifted women.

"One of the reasons I wrote 'Sound of a Silver Horn...' was thinking about role models for women in popular culture," notes Dr. Noble. "I remember when I started it, I was really disgusted by a couple of things; one was the fact that the best selling books were focusing on women as victims and as problems: the 'Women Who Love Too Much' genre.

"At the same time, I was aware that Walt Disney movies, the 'Little Mermaid' type, were coming back full force, and offered such an awful model to young girls: the old stereotypical 'Wait in the wings for your prince to come' and then your story's over. Then you're in your place."

Do people with multiple talents realize their abilities as readily and fully as they want? Tina Fey is certainly multitalented. She is a writer, screenwriter, comedian, actress, and producer.

A high level of achievement and fulfillment is not automatic or assured for all gifted and talented adults.

Probably most high ability, multitalented people struggle with multiple inner and outer concerns that can slow or stop achievement.

New study on prodigies reveals some startling findings. By Scott Barry Kaufman, Ph.D....

"Looking at all eight children together, the researchers found some striking patterns. The first thing they noticed is the wide spread of IQ scores- ranging from 108 to 147. Consistent with the work of Feldman and Morelock, it appears that a high IQ is not necessary to be a prodigy.

What was particularly striking, however, was their subtest scores. Every single prodigy displayed an exceptional working memory."

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Related: Claire Danes and Temple Grandin on Autism and thinking differently
http://talentdevelop.com/2590/