It’s Okay to Fail, Mama. Really.
We’ve all heard that as you get older, you tend to get set in your ways.
Sometimes, those ways aren’t that great, and whether it is cooking the same dinner or watching the same shows again and again, you might start to notice your life zoom past you. Why is this? I think a big part of it is being in your comfort zone, and feeling too tired to try something new only to flop.
Clearly, I am in a self-exploratory phase of my life. I realized not long ago that it’s very easy find reasons to stick to the status quo and never make a change. But the more I thought about it, the more I realized that it doesn’t take that much extra energy to branch out and try new hobbies, meet new people, and really just try to “think outside the box” in all different areas of life.
In the past year, I have taken on a few new challenges by choice:
- Knitting - Just for the heck of it, I decided to try. It was beyond frustrating at first, and I wasn’t sure it was for me. However, I took a class and slowly got the hang of it. I sat around a table with 8 other women, many of us struggling in different ways as we dropped and added stitches, and chirped for the ladies who were obvious naturals. I have crashed and burned on a few projects, but the reward of finishing something as minor as a dishcloth is enough to make me laugh it off and try again. (It’s funny – it really DOES go faster the second time you try something!)
- The Gym - OMG, I joined a gym. OMG, I am actually going, and quite regularly. I keep trying new classes, and go into each one with the knowledge that I could very well fall flat on my face, and that is okay. At the end of the day, everyone going into that class with me (with a few exceptions, I’m sure) has some kind of insecurity, and it’s sort of therapeutic to laugh with classmates as our yoga teacher contorts herself into circus-worthy positions as we fall on our bums. It has been fantastic to see people of all shapes, sizes and physical restrictions fight their way through classes, and even better to start seeing them week after week. Camaraderie and pressure are being formed. We cheer each other on through that next wave in rowing class, and give each other grief if someone misses a class.
- Reading. Yes, reading. I read all the time as a matter of business and necessity, but I’ve recently begun reading for leisure. My attention span is short, so instead of giving up on a book, I’ve taken to reading a small, digestible chunk at a time. Whether that means reading a chapter, ten pages, or for ten minutes, I am finishing books.
Here’s the thing about all of these activities: It’s okay if you fail at any of them. The worst thing that can happen to you in any of them is that you may forge new friendships, learn a new hobby, or just become a tad bit smarter.
