Natural

 Am I a natural at something? That is a very hard question to answer because I first have to think about what it means to be a natural. Is there any such thing as a natural? Can you really just do something for the first time and be great at it? I don’t think you can. I think you can have talent, and it may take less hard work to be good at something, but I don’t think someone can be good without work or practice.

            

For example, some people may say that I am a natural at sports. I played varsity basketball, soccer, and tennis all through high school, and I was pretty good at them. But how did I become good? Did I just decide to go out for the teams in 9^th grade and end up being a “natural”? No. I had played tennis since I was six, basketball since I was five, and soccer since I was four. I had been going to practices for them basically all of my life, and I had put in a lot of hard work.

            

Another thing people may think I am a natural at is school. I have always gotten straight A’s, and I have always scored pretty well on the standardized tests. But I don’t think I was born with that ability. I knew just as much as the other kids when I first came to school. I think it had more to do with how hard I tried and listened in school. If I would not have listened or done my homework, than I wouldn’t have been able to get the good grades.

            

Something I would never be considered a natural at is art. I am just not good, and I have never been able to draw anything. I believe most people who are good at art were born with the ability. I’m sure there have been a few individuals who have worked extremely hard in order to be an artist, but most artists were born talented.  For example, when I was younger, I would always try to draw pictures, and they always turned out terrible. On the other hand, my friend Amy could draw very well, and she always won the different contests for our school. Amy and I had the same amount of experience, but she was just naturally good at art, and I was not. However, if Amy stopped drawing and I practiced every day, I would eventually pass her because of the effort I was putting forth.

            

Moreover, I believe some people may have more talent than others when it comes to certain things, but that doesn’t always matter. If someone with talent never practices, and someone without talent practices every day, who will be more successful? I believe the one who practices every day will be, and that is why it is important to work hard no matter how good you are at something. Because eventually, relying on your talent will not be good enough when you compare it to the people who are putting in massive amounts of time and hard work.