Do stuff you're bad at
Why do so many of us stop dancing, playing an instrument, playing a beloved sport, singing, making art? There's a tyranny to the idea that we should only pursue interests if we excel at them. The concept disconnects us with what motivates us, what touches us deepest, what creates bliss and flow and joy.
This is why I encourage my clients to do stuff they're bad at. Like boorishly, intentionally, with wide-open eyes pursue the things that the culture would have them believe they shouldn't. To go beyond the external superficial (though powerful) influences that make us doubt ourselves and our basic goodness. To connect with something deep inside that tells us what gives us pleasure, what makes us feel like ourselves, what goes beyond the dichotomous thinking of good or bad.
In my own life, I have made a point of doing things I'm bad at. A partial list here:
- meditating
- dancing
- singing
- painting
- writing
- teaching
The funny thing about doing what you're bad at is that sometimes you get better at it. Sometimes you don't, but it doesn't matter. In the process of doing what we're bad at simply out of love, we come to approach our lives with humor and a light touch. An openness that continually asks the question, what matters to me? What feels good to this precious body in this moment?
The energy we bring to doing things we're bad at strengthens our capacity to lean into uncertainty and discomfort, which, by the way, empowers us to go deeper into our Intuitive Eating practice as well.
What would you love to do that you're bad at? What's holding you back?