Hidden? Uhh, the only thing I can think of is that I'm quite talented when it comes to pogo-stick . . . ing? Whatever the verb would be for using a pogo-stick. My record is 4,200-something, but that was a long time ago and I haven't even seen a pogo stick in several years. But I'm sure I've still got the bounce somewhere.

Other then that, I guess I'd have to say my talent for improving upon other person's ideas and creations. I am not, myself, a creative person. It's difficult for me to start things or come up with an original idea of my own, but if I can pull from somewhere else, I can usually produce something impressive.

One example of this is from my senior year of high school when I was in Speech and Debate. I thought I'd be really good at it because I'm outgoing, I love to talk, and I don't mind getting up in front of people and making a fool out of myself (which is what half of the "speech" categories require of its participants). But I wasn't good. Not really. The only category I had any talent for was OI (Oratorical Interpretation) which required me to give a speech that was already well known (i.e., King's "I Have a Dream"). All other categories required too much originality. Originality that I simply do not posses. But what I was good at was coaching my teammates. I was constantly being asked to edit speeches and give my thoughts on a performance. I perfected jokes, I perfected blocking and movements, I perfected phrasing and timing and tone. If someone else wrote/put together the speech, I could fix what was wrong with it and make it near perfect. I didn't do very well in competitions that year, but almost everyone I critiqued won a trophy in one competition or another.

Another area that this talent came in handy is when I was in the tv/news program all four years of high school. Head producer my junior and senior years, I was the one that rarely did any individual task, but instead helped everyone else with whatever they were doing. I helped fix editing of ENG stories, I rewrote anchor scripts and the Corny jokes that had been worked in, I helped develop ideas for gag segments after being presented with a treatment. But I couldn't ever start anything by myself. When it came to my own stuff, I couldn't write an anchor script or an intro for an ENG story. I couldn't think up an original or even parody gag. I couldn't Be given b-roll footage, intro, outro, and voiceover and figure out the best way to edit it all together. I could just improve upon what other people started.

The last semi-interesting--and very specific--example I can think of right now is from my junior year of English. We used to spend days before a test playing this game where we'd split into groups, the teacher would ask a question, and the first team to have a member raise their hand and answer correctly would get a point. Most points meant extra credit on the test. Besides the fact that my team always won (and therefore all of my test scores were 100+% that year), one game ended with a question that each group would take turns answering. Up to 5 points would be rewarded to each group depending on their answer. The first three groups got 2 or 3 points for their answers, my group got all 5. But it wasn't that I had said anything more profound, or interesting, or even more thought out than the previous groups. In fact, I repeated exactly what the other groups had said (thank goodness, too, because I actually had no idea what the answer was), I just made it sound better. And that's really one of the only talents I have. Taking other people's stuff, and making it sound better.

I'm also really good at repeating back to a teacher what they say, but in such a way that they think I've added some insight or come up with some thought on my own. Oh, how I wish that were the case, but I can't do it. I'm really no good at interpreting or analyzing anything. What I am good at is taking other interpretations and analyzation and making them better. I need a platform to work off of (I don't think I've ever come up with my own thesis for a paper), but once I have a foundation, I'm good to go.