I read the book "Talent is overrated" (Well, part of it). It does a good job of laying the case for hard work and mastery, which I ultimately agree with as being the most important factor for success. That being said, I can think of talents I've come across and they were by no means overrated.

The problem is talent can often mean mental weakness because those talents have never been pushed to the point where us normal, hardworking folks have. But, what happens if the talent isn't mentally weak or doesn't fizzle out after a few years/months? Then you get something awesome.

The problem is thats rare. Not just with talent though. Its the same for ordinary or talented in a lot of ways. Most of the work to get really good is done through a grueling forging process that needs outside guidance and inner focus that a lot of athletes never really get a chance to have/develop. Its hard to spend thousands of hours consistently doing repetitive movements or have someone believe in you enough to help you understand all the losses are ultimately a process. So, people quit and or remain mediocre.

Getting off tangent, back to talent-

Not to say you can't be awesome through mastery alone, I think you can. But, I found myself sitting here and thinking of two of the biggest talents I've trained with in Jiu Jitsu. One in particular has been doing it a couple years, barely trains, barely sleeps, and drinks all the time. Yet, hes one of the best I've seen on the mat and is constantly smashing guys. A lot of that is talent.

I think thats awesome.