The Benefits of Being Bad at Something
In a world of monetizing hobbies, 30 day challenges, and accounts that dedicate themselves to improving one activity, is there space for experimenting and sporadic adventures? There isn’t just space for it, there’s a need for it.
Don’t get me wrong. Picking a hobby and staying with it consistently to see progress, to push through plateaus and difficult times, and to see that hard work pay off is definitely worth doing. It builds resilience and patience.
But it’s really just one part of a larger equation. There is just as much benefit in starting new activities, doing them here and there, having fun, and then starting something else. Sounds frivolous? It isn’t.
It’s ok to be curious about things you don’t know
Learning is a life-long adventure. If you have things where your mind says “I wonder how that’s done,” it’s ok to explore it, even just for a little bit, until your curiosity is satisfied. Our brain wants to better understand the world around us. By trying new things, we get glimpses into different little universes. And, not being immortal, we don’t have to the time to explore every single one of them in detail, so sometimes it’s ok to just take a peek and then move on. The experience will stay with us no matter what.
Trying a new hobby allows you to practice being vulnerable
Being a beginner means showing up without skills and making mistakes. This is vulnerability at its finest and rawest. We’ll be clumsy, confused, we’ll stumble, and possibly fall. The more we practice being in this vulnerable space, being seen while, well…, sucking, the easier it becomes. And soon we’ll be able to just enjoy the process of being completely bad at something. There is freedom in no longer caring what other people think of us when we’re struggling.
Learning something new is good for your brain health
Whether we try a new sport or a new instrument or something else entirely, when we do something we haven’t done before, we ask our brain to form new connections and pathways. This in turn improves cognition and in the long run slows down cognitive decline as we get older.
Being a beginner builds transferrable skills
When we become ok with being vulnerable, we become more patient with ourselves. This patience can be transferred to other parts of our lives. Patience transfers to traffic, waiting in line, and even being more patient with others. The more we allow ourselves the time to learn, to grow, to make mistakes, the less we tend to judge others and the more we are able to extend this patience them.
Doing something only when it feels fun is regulating to the already stressed nervous system
If you’re in a constant rush and feel like you “have to” get things done, then maybe it’s time to give your nervous system a bit of a rest. Doing something fun, and doing it ONLY when it feels fun can be extremely nourishing to your system. Let’s say you enjoy swimming but don’t want to swim regularly to get faster or more efficient. That’s ok. Swimming in a lake or a pool just for the sake of floating or moving about for a little bit whenever you have time and want to relax is great. It allows your nervous system to rest and restore itself. Any hobby can be exactly like that the moment we stop making it about performance or monetization, so that we can simply do it for the fun of it.
Trying many new hobbies gives you more chances to find something that will stick around longer
The only way to figure out what brings you joy is to try different things and then rule out a lot of them. I’ve tried hobbies I thought would be fun but weren’t (ballet and guitar) and others that I thought would be a one time thing but they seem to be sticking around (sewing and longboard dancing). Sometimes joy shows up in the most unexpected places, but we can’t know unless we try.
The key is to find balance. If you have a tendency to start new things all the time but rarely follow through, lean a little bit into sticking with one thing. If you’re on the other hand someone that stays with one thing only, venture out a bit and try yourself at something new. We tend to stick to what our nervous system considers comfortable and safe (this can be new things or staying with one thing) and the more we practice leaning into what’s not comfortable, the more balanced and confident we become.
Your next steps:
This one’s easy…try something new!
There are some hobbies that are for a few hours, some for a few seasons and some possibly for a lifetime. The more you try, the more you’re likely to find something that will stick around for a while.
Have fun!
