To Inspire:

Here’s a scenario: There is something interesting that you don’t know how to do – sourdough bread, guitar, watercolor painting. You decide to give it a try. You invest in it, in suppliers needed and with your time. You try the new thing, and it goes…badly. And you put away your bread bowl or your guitar or your paintbrush and walk away.

I know I’m not alone in this experience.

I’m currently reading Learning to Love Midlife by Chip Conley and this observation really struck me:

Babies are not self-conscious when they learn to walk. Yet, as we age, our self-judgement and our ego-preservation rob us of all kinds of opportunities to be a neophyte. It’s not easy to learn something new, especially in midlife.

Of course, study after study shows that lifelong learning is key to keeping our brains sharp and improving our overall quality of life as we age. It is important to try new things, to keep learning.

Conley says as we get older, we have the opportunity to move from “knowing that” to “knowing how.” We have the life experience, and we give up the “how.” We want to know what we’re doing, and we want it to do it well. Learning how to do something new becomes more frightening – as Conley says, no one signs up to look like an idiot.

He says, “The goal of becoming a beginner in midlife is not just to get smarter or more proficient at something, it’s to approach life with fresh eyes. Becoming a beginner allows us to reengage with and rediscover natural talents we can build at any age. Taking this leap gives us confidence at the exact time we need it most. It turns back the clock.”

Conley shares the story of a man named Chris who, because of some of the challenges of his childhood, grew up thinking he was never good enough. He struggled with perfectionism for years. And while “perfection” sounds like a good thing, often the reality of perfectionism is an overwhelming fear of failure leading to procrastination and a whole host of mental health challenges. Ultimately realizing this mindset wasn’t working for him, Chris intentionally immersed himself in new beginnings, taking up art, breadmaking, and travel. Chris says, “When engaged in each, I have an unusual experience of time – I feel completely engrossed, time slows down and becomes expansive, I get lost in the details and enamored with new-found beauty.”

Diving into something new can bring challenges and fears, but when we leave behind the need for things to be perfect and the fear of failure, the process of being a beginner again, of learning something new, can keep us young.

What new thing have you taken up this year? Or what new thing would you love to try? Give yourself the gift of leaving the fear of failure behind, and learn something new.

Written by Michelle O’Brien, Manager of Marketing & Communications