"No man is an iland, intire of itselfe; every man is a peece of the Continent, a part of the maine...any mans death diminishes me, because I am involved in Mankinde; And therefore never send to know for whom the bell tolls; It tolls for thee"
John Donne
Every person, regardless of personality of occupation, has a brain in which their exists some particular area of optimal functioning - an area that, when accessed in the right situation, can provide the person with an experience of enormously fulfilling, competent, joyful activity.
People's talents vary greatly: Someone like Leonardo da Vinci seems to have had a whole continent of brilliance. Others of us have archipelagos. Some of us have gifts in language, mathematics, science, spatial relationships, or music.
How great or numerous your talents happen to be isn't the crucial thing. What matters most is that exercising your gifts should feel terrific, provide a vehicle for personal growth, or even form the basis for a career.
Why don't we always know about these islands?
First, our islands of brilliance or giftedness sometimes come so naturally that we don't even know we have them or that they make us exceptional.
The second reason we may not be fully conscious of our islands is that we may not have had sufficient time, opportunity or daring to follow our own inclinations.
It's never too late for you to find new islands of brilliance for yourself or your loved ones. All you need is commitment. Every day, you make many small choices that determine how you spend your time; as soon as the commitment is there, you can begin to exercise your will in a new direction. A first step toward developing that commitment is to confirm and accept that you, like every one else, have islands of brilliance and can find them if you are determined to do so.
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