Great Talent Matures Late

Great Talent Matures Late-大器晩成

The literal meaning of the kanji in this four-character-compound idiom is:

A large vessel can not be created quickly; To become great, it takes much time.

Therefore, it’s not too late, for one.

The key is to start.

You’re next.

Here are some well known examples of taikibansei:

Taikichiro Mori
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Mr. Taikichiro Mori was an academic where he served as Dean of the Faculty of Commerce from 1954 to 1959 at the Yokohama City University, and who became a real-estate investor at age 51, when he founded Mori Building Company. His brilliant investments made him the richest man in the world in 1992, when he had a net worth of $13 billion. Mr. Mori Legacy lives on with his incredible vision for beautiful building. Here is one example ().

Harland Sanders
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Harland Sanders was better known as Colonel Sanders, and was 62 when he franchised Kentucky Fried Chicken in 1952, which he sold for $2 million 12 years later.
Before serving up his renowned original recipe, Sanders held a number of jobs in his early life, such as steam engine stoker, insurance salesman and filling station operator. He began selling fried chicken from his roadside restaurant in North Corbin, Kentucky, during the Great Depression.

Ray Kroc
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During the Great Depression, Kroc worked a variety of jobs selling paper cups, as a real estate agent in Florida, and sometimes playing the piano in bands. He then spent his career as a milkshake-device salesman before buying McDonald’s at age 52 in 1954. He grew it into the world’s biggest fast-food franchise.

Susan Boyle
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“There are enough people in the world who are going to write you off. You don’t need to do that to yourself.”

Susan’s mother encouraged her to audition for Britain’s Got Talent.

She was hesitant because she believed people were being chosen for their looks.

Through the constant persuasion of her former coach, she took the courage to try as a tribute to her mother. She was 47 years old.

When she stepped on stage and asked about her dream, she responded: “I’m trying to be a professional singer”.

Some parts of the audience started rolling their eyes in disbelief of the kind of ambition she has. Some felt disgusted on her level of confidence.

Despite the crowd’s doubt, Boyle chose to ignore them and went on singing her winning piece “I Dreamed a Dream”.

As soon as she hits the first note, all of their doubts turned into awe.

She managed to finish the song receiving a standing ovation from the audience and three YES from judges.

In fact, her first album I Dreamed a Dream at one point became UK’s best-selling debut album of all time.

Yes, dear reader, in light of the events in our shared world in 2020, no matter what, when, or why, one’s great talent is ready to be seen and heard.

One owns it to oneself to believe in the vision of oneself and to consider it as a gift to the other and as an example for them to follow.