MOAA: Mediocre Isn't Good Enough

MOAA stands for the title of the blog I wanted to maintain at the time, I'll let y'all know what the full title was when I feel like it :P In the mean time, this entry is regarding an issue I felt strongly about and features my style of writing back then. Please excuse my excessive use of parentheses, getting rid of this bad habit is a work in progress.

People always say everyone is bound to be good at something. I agree. I think I'm good at dancing, academics, observation, analysis, keeping calm under pressure, the list goes on. However, the catch is that I'm good at these things, but I'm not particularly good at any of them. Allow me to explain.

I define good as being better than the average person, so in that spirit, (I think... And people have validated this...) I'm better than most people at the skills mentioned above. But what does this mean? It simply means it's easier for me to do certain things in life than other people. "Good for you..." You may or may not lament, depending on whether you doubt my credibility ;)

But is just being slightly better at some things than some people all that we want? Of course not! Humans always strive to be best, that's where competitiveness come from. In fact, that's where competitions come from, because people want to win, be the champions.

This mentality works from another perspective as well. People want to see, hear and experience the best. They want to make the best use of their time, enjoy the best that they can (because we all work way too hard). In that case, who decides what's good enough? Who decides whose talent goes past mediocrity into superb? Professionals? Well, then who decided who the professionals are?

My point is that if what you're good at is only at the mediocre level, that 'talent' isn't gonna get you anywhere other than the admiration of friends. This fact is particularly pertinent in the entertainment industry, where your job depends on the audience's appreciation. The great people say: dare to dream. But I say: daring to dream isn't the problem, it's the fact that if you're not good enough, you're not going to be even mildly successful. And to be successful is the goal because that's the only you're gonna earn money. This is the reason why many parents don't support their children's dreams of becoming professional musicians or athletes. It's not that the parents don't believe in their children, it's that they're afraid others don't believe in their children like they do.

Entertainment has no leeway for mediocrity. You may love what you do but if other people don't love how you do it, you're not gonna be able to do what you love anymore. Many people (including myself) love to sing, dance, act, etc, but only a handful make it out there into the professional world. Even then, people are still struggling to survive because there are just so many other people out there who are better than them.

So, the million-dollar question: how does one get from good to great? Two ways, either you have natural talent, or you have the capacity to nurture your talent. If you were born with powerhouse vocals and a magnetic personality to match, it isn't guaranteed that you'll make it but it's certainly gonna be easier for you than for someone who has a good singing voice and a nice personality (I probably know about a hundred of those). You would also require less training to get even better than the others who are already struggling. However, if you really want to pursue your passion and you know that you have the potential to become better, you just have to work for it. And I mean this both literally and figuratively. Literally, because most of us don't have the spare cash to go for extra lessons taught by actual qualified professionals lying around, so we would have to work to earn the money to pay for the pursuit of our passions. Figuratively, because even if you've got the money for the lessons and/training, would you have the time and effort to wholeheartedly enjoy and hone your skills, on top of juggling schoolwork or work in general and your family and your R&R time?

Despite my tone of despair (due to my lack of money and energy to do the above), if you think you've got what it takes, go for it! I'm all for the people who chase their dreams. Well, as for the rest of us, allow yourselves to indulge in the fact that even though our 'mediocre talents' aren't exactly applauded by the world, it is who you are that is your strength, not what you can do. I'm pretty sure that in the future (and I'm counting on it), someone would have created an algorithm to help sort us, by both our personalities and strengths, into (by then) the infinite possibilities of the different jobs out there. So rest assured, the future is only gonna look brighter...

Cover image from here, by artist Theresa Chiechi.