--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: You may not have any extra talent, but…" description: "\"You may not have any extra talent, but maybe you are just paying more attention to what you are doing.\" — Alan Shepard" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a1a/alan-shepard-11358_attention_you-may-not-have-any-extra-talent-but-ma_974439.png" --- # You may not have any extra talent, but maybe you are just… ![“You may not have any extra talent, but maybe you are just paying more attention to what you are doing.” quote by Alan Shepard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a1a/alan-shepard-11358_attention_you-may-not-have-any-extra-talent-but-ma_974439.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a1a/alan-shepard-11358_attention_you-may-not-have-any-extra-talent-but-ma_974439.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a1a/alan-shepard-11358_attention_you-may-not-have-any-extra-talent-but-ma_974439.png) > “You may not have any extra talent, but maybe you are just paying more attention to what you are doing.” [Alan Shepard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-shepard/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Attentiveness can compensate for lack of innate talent; focus and observation enhance performance. **In simple terms:** Paying attention can make up for limited talent. Key Takeaway Cultivate deep focus on your tasks. Themes attention skill development mindfulness Mood inspirational thoughtful Type guidance motivation When to use this quote - workplace tasks - creative projects - sports training Key Concepts cognitive psychology learning theory Questions to Reflect On - What areas could benefit from more focused observation? - How can you sustain attention without fatigue? A Different Perspective Overemphasis on attention may cause burnout. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Attention](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/attention/) [Paying Attention](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/paying-attention/) [Talent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/talent/) ## Related quotes > [You think everybody's paying attention to what you're doing. No, they're paying attention to what's interesting to them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-lefsetz/you-think-everybody-s-paying-attention-to-what-you-re-doing-no-they/) [Bob Lefsetz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-lefsetz/) > [I did two matches for WCW, for 'Saturday Night' and for 'WorldWide.' Scott D'Amore was booking the extra talent. I remember I was really…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edge/i-did-two-matches-for-wcw-for-saturday-night-and-for-worldwide-scott/) [Edge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edge/) > [I was training at Killer Kowalski's old place, and at that time it was the Chaotic Training Center but now it is the New…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tommaso-ciampa/i-was-training-at-killer-kowalski-s-old-place-and-at-that-time-it-was/) [Tommaso Ciampa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tommaso-ciampa/) > [I want to be on a successful team, and I know that paying one or two or three players premium hurts your chances of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-cutler/i-want-to-be-on-a-successful-team-and-i-know-that-paying-one-or-two/) [Jay Cutler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-cutler/) > [“I always thought talent was everything, but maybe it was always money. Or even class. Or if not class exactly, connections.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/meg-wolitzer/i-always-thought-talent-was-everything-but-maybe-it-was-always-money/) [Meg Wolitzer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/meg-wolitzer/) > [I'd like to manage someone, a young talent that maybe doesn't have the mic skills.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-bischoff/i-d-like-to-manage-someone-a-young-talent-that-maybe-doesn-t-have-the/) [Eric Bischoff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-bischoff/) > [Maybe it could be my talent, maybe it could be my heart, but what I want in life is to make a name for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/liza-soberano/maybe-it-could-be-my-talent-maybe-it-could-be-my-heart-but-what-i/) [Liza Soberano](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/liza-soberano/) > [There's a huge fan base behind NXT, which is cool because that opens up the door to younger talent that maybe at one point…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rey-mysterio/there-s-a-huge-fan-base-behind-nxt-which-is-cool-because-that-opens/) [Rey Mysterio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rey-mysterio/) > [“There are different kinds of talent. Maybe your talent is in interpretation. Maybe you're a stylist.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainbow-rowell/there-are-different-kinds-of-talent-maybe-your-talent-is-in/) [Rainbow Rowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainbow-rowell/) > [We have the talent, just not the money and not the audience. People in France don't really like fantasy. You need to go to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joann-sfar/we-have-the-talent-just-not-the-money-and-not-the-audience-people-in/) [Joann Sfar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joann-sfar/) > [With success it's like 60% talent, maybe 20% luck and then 20% being at the right place at the right time. There are so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-troxler/with-success-it-s-like-60-talent-maybe-20-luck-and-then-20-being-at/) [Seth Troxler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-troxler/) > [“You see? This is what's wrong with the world. A young lady with bleached hair, an estuarine accent and unfeasible breasts can outsell a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-fowler/you-see-this-is-what-s-wrong-with-the-world-a-young-lady-with/) [Christopher Fowler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-fowler/) > [Ultimately I'll probably end up going out with an actress again. But an architect would be cool. They need to do something creative. I'm…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-booth/ultimately-i-ll-probably-end-up-going-out-with-an-actress-again-but/) [Douglas Booth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-booth/) > [How’ is always more important that ‘what.’ See if you can give much more attention to the doing than to the result that you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eckhart-tolle/how-is-always-more-important-that-what-see-if-you-can-give-much-more/) [Eckhart Tolle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eckhart-tolle/) > [When exercising, be sure to focus your attention on what you are doing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-haney/when-exercising-be-sure-to-focus-your-attention-on-what-you-are-doing/) [Lee Haney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-haney/) ## More by Alan Shepard > [I realized up there that our planet is not infinite. It's fragile. That may not be obvious to a lot of folks, and it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-shepard/i-realized-up-there-that-our-planet-is-not-infinite-it-s-fragile-that/) [Alan Shepard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-shepard/) > [“If you don't use your experience, your past is wasted, and you are betraying yourself.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-shepard/if-you-don-t-use-your-experience-your-past-is-wasted-and-you-are/) [Alan Shepard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-shepard/) > [Unfortunately, the suit is so stiff, I can't do this with two hands, but I'm going to try a little sand-trap shot here.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-shepard/unfortunately-the-suit-is-so-stiff-i-can-t-do-this-with-two-hands-but/) [Alan Shepard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-shepard/) > [I think about the personal accomplishment, but there's more of a sense of the grand achievement by all the people who could put this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-shepard/i-think-about-the-personal-accomplishment-but-there-s-more-of-a-sense/) [Alan Shepard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-shepard/) > [The first plane ride was in a homemade glider my buddy and I built. Unfortunately we didn't get more than four feet off the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-shepard/the-first-plane-ride-was-in-a-homemade-glider-my-buddy-and-i-built/) [Alan Shepard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-shepard/) > [It's been a long way, but we're here.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-shepard/it-s-been-a-long-way-but-we-re-here/) [Alan Shepard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-shepard/) > [I must admit, maybe I am a piece of history after all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-shepard/i-must-admit-maybe-i-am-a-piece-of-history-after-all/) [Alan Shepard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-shepard/) > [Of course I was delighted the flight was over, but I still had to worry about cleaning up inside the cabin, I had to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-shepard/of-course-i-was-delighted-the-flight-was-over-but-i-still-had-to/) [Alan Shepard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-shepard/) > [Because of the suit I was wearing, I couldn't make a good pivot on the swing. And I had to hit the ball with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-shepard/because-of-the-suit-i-was-wearing-i-couldn-t-make-a-good-pivot-on-the/) [Alan Shepard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-shepard/) > [There's no question that all the generations got excited about the first flights, with Kennedy's inspiration to go to the moon, leaving the planet…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-shepard/there-s-no-question-that-all-the-generations-got-excited-about-the/) [Alan Shepard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-shepard/) > [Then I thought, with the same clubhead speed, the ball's going to go at least six times as far. There's absolutely no drag, so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-shepard/then-i-thought-with-the-same-clubhead-speed-the-ball-s-going-to-go-at/) [Alan Shepard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-shepard/) > [The pilot looked at his cues of attitude and speed and orientation and so on and responded as he would from the same cues…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-shepard/the-pilot-looked-at-his-cues-of-attitude-and-speed-and-orientation/) [Alan Shepard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-shepard/) > [So everything turned out fine, and we were given the opportunity to go to Washington and be briefed on the project of man in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-shepard/so-everything-turned-out-fine-and-we-were-given-the-opportunity-to-go/) [Alan Shepard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-shepard/) > [Miles and miles and miles.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-shepard/miles-and-miles-and-miles/) [Alan Shepard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-shepard/) > [Then there was the challenge to keep doing better and better, to fly the best test flight that anybody had ever flown. That led…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-shepard/then-there-was-the-challenge-to-keep-doing-better-and-better-to-fly/) [Alan Shepard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-shepard/) [Explore all 60 Alan Shepard quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-shepard/) ## More Attention quotes > [It appears to me that one great cause of our difference in opinion on subjects which we often discuss is that you have always…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-ricardo/it-appears-to-me-that-one-great-cause-of-our-difference-in-opinion-on/) [David Ricardo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-ricardo/) > [People pay far too much attention to the television and they're quite literal in some ways. At the beginning, when I was playing very…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ardal-o-hanlon/people-pay-far-too-much-attention-to-the-television-and-they-re-quite/) [Ardal O'Hanlon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ardal-o-hanlon/) > [Television, radio, social media. The 24/7 news cycle plows forward mercilessly on our desks, in our cars and in our pockets. Thousands and thousands…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-prince/television-radio-social-media-the-24-7-news-cycle-plows-forward/) [Joseph Prince](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-prince/) > [By making conscious choices in our behavior and where we focus our attention, we can transform our experience of our body, decrease our biological…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deepak-chopra/by-making-conscious-choices-in-our-behavior-and-where-we-focus-our/) [Deepak Chopra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deepak-chopra/) > [Our inventions are wont to be pretty toys, which distract our attention from serious things. They are but improved means to an unimproved end.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/our-inventions-are-wont-to-be-pretty-toys-which-distract-our/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [What people don't normally know about us is the hustle is very real, and it's sorely driven a lot by how we consider ourselves.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lzzy-hale/what-people-don-t-normally-know-about-us-is-the-hustle-is-very-real/) [Lzzy Hale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lzzy-hale/) > [For me, the term "psychotherapy" is limiting. It implies that we work with mind and emotions, but excludes the body and pays scant attention…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jed-diamond/for-me-the-term-psychotherapy-is-limiting-it-implies-that-we-work/) [Jed Diamond](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jed-diamond/) > [When you approach something to photograph it, first be still with yourself until the object of your attention affirms your presence. Then don't leave…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/minor-white/when-you-approach-something-to-photograph-it-first-be-still-with/) [Minor White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/minor-white/) > [I'm writing about real things. Real people. Real characters. You have to believe what I write about is true or you wouldn't pay any…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lou-reed/i-m-writing-about-real-things-real-people-real-characters-you-have-to/) [Lou Reed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lou-reed/) > [ I went to a mosque in Philadelphia with \[my wife\] in December 24, 1999. And we we went to this mosque in Philly, and… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahershala-ali/i-went-to-a-mosque-in-philadelphia-with-my-wife-in-december-24-1999/) [Mahershala Ali](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahershala-ali/) > [The Harvard Business Review recently had an article called 'The Human Moment,' about how to make real contact with a person at work: ...…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-goleman/the-harvard-business-review-recently-had-an-article-called-the-human/) [Daniel Goleman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-goleman/) > [Let us thank God heartily as often as we pray that we have His Spirit in us to teach us to pray. Thanksgiving will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-murray/let-us-thank-god-heartily-as-often-as-we-pray-that-we-have-his-spirit/) [Andy Murray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-murray/) > [Enlightened people live in very charged states of attention, with a tremendous power circuiting through them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/enlightened-people-live-in-very-charged-states-of-attention-with-a/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [We must have a welfare system that we can afford, which will mean giving greater attention to directing the welfare program toward its primary…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-portillo/we-must-have-a-welfare-system-that-we-can-afford-which-will-mean/) [Michael Portillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-portillo/) > [The director's job should give you a sense of music without drawing attention to itself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/taylor-hackford/the-director-s-job-should-give-you-a-sense-of-music-without-drawing/) [Taylor Hackford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/taylor-hackford/) [Browse all 10,153 Attention quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/attention/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "You may not have any extra talent, but maybe you are just paying more attention to what you are doing.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Alan Shepard" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-shepard/you-may-not-have-any-extra-talent-but-maybe-you-are-just-paying-more/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Attention" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-shepard/you-may-not-have-any-extra-talent-but-maybe-you-are-just-paying-more/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a1a/alan-shepard-11358_attention_you-may-not-have-any-extra-talent-but-ma_974439.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a1a/alan-shepard-11358_attention_you-may-not-have-any-extra-talent-but-ma_974439.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a1a/alan-shepard-11358_attention_you-may-not-have-any-extra-talent-but-ma_974439.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“You may not have any extra talent, but maybe you are just paying more attention to what you are doing.” — Alan Shepard", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Alan Shepard", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-shepard/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "You may not have any extra...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-shepard/you-may-not-have-any-extra-talent-but-maybe-you-are-just-paying-more/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-shepard/you-may-not-have-any-extra-talent-but-maybe-you-are-just-paying-more/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```