Roy Tang

Programmer, engineer, scientist, critic, gamer, dreamer, and kid-at-heart.

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Someone on quora asked:

Be Positive: How do I tell someone they’re not talented in a field they really want to pursue?

On the one hand, it’s not really your responsibility. Unless it affects you somehow (i.e. their work in that field is affecting yours)

On the other hand, if that person is not aware that he doesn’t have talent then it might be better to let him know so that he can decide whether he wants to go on or not. If he is already aware of this, and decides to go on anyway, I don’t think you can do anything more.

If you do decide to discuss this with him, try to soften it a little. I would wrap it in concern: “Hey, are you doing okay? You always seem like you’re having trouble with [field]?” Get them to consider other alternatives: “If things are so hard, have you ever thought of pursuing some other field like [alternative]?”

Posted by under notes at #answers
Also on: quora / 0