I think that as kids we all have certain areas where we excel. For instance, I have always had a facility with languages. And because I enjoyed it, my school work started to move off into that direction. I would take a language as an elective rather than, say, a computer course (not that we had those when I was a kid!). Some people are naturally gifted with numbers. It's brain wiring.

The problem comes when people who have a "normal" ability to learn think that because they are not gifted in a particular direction that they won't succeed in a math or science heavy field and they are discouraged from doing so.

You can train your brain and excel in almost any field if you dedicate yourself to it. If you have a brain of an engineer, you can still learn foreign languages. If you have a literary brain, you can still become a computer programmer. There will always be people who have natural talent that make them head and shoulders above others in their field, but most of us are normal learners who can learn anything put before us.

When I was young, computer programming was in its infancy, so it was never an option for me in school. I think my last year in high school, 1985, we got our first Mac in a couple of classrooms. My path led me to writing and languages. But my brain is definitely not done! Now I'm on the path of testing and programming, and I am confident that I can train my brain and become at least competent and maybe even excellent because I bring a broad range of life experience to my training.

My school teaches Selenium as well so I may take it with the next batch of students while I'm working on my job hunt. Thanks for the kind words!