Hidden Talent

For those of us who thought that some day we would be famous there is but one thing to admit:

We are way behind schedule.

Now this is not necessarily bad. I'm a member of the Baby Boom generation, as impressive a collection of the self-absorbed as ever walked the planet. I'll quickly concede we are one group that needed extended time in the wilderness, eating locusts and learning humility.

We are way behind schedule because, among other reasons, we don't get to write the schedule. Family responsibilities, illnesses, bad career choices, broken marriages, and war have their way of altering matters a tad. If we are wise, we learn from each one of them. Some time spent staring at a hospital ceiling can bring fresh insights to even the most rigid personality.

All joking about The Peter Principle aside, look around and you'll find that you are surrounded by people who are working far beneath their potential. That's one of the great strengths of this nation. We have, as they say in baseball, a deep bench. Time after time, I've seen organizations that are surprised when they learn of the talent lurking within the ranks.

I'm not. I've met those people. They possess a strength of character that has led them to train and study for learning's sake and with little or no guarantee that they'll get a chance to put most of that knowledge to extensive use.

They may not be power-hungry but they are power-ready.