QUOTE OF THE DAY
“If we wait until we feel ready to take on a new challenge, we might never pursue it at all. There may not come a day when we wake up and suddenly feel prepared. We become prepared by taking the leap anyway.”
Adam Grant, from his new book Hidden Potential: The Science of Achieving Greater Things
IDEA OF THE DAY
My partner, Chad, used to be a ballroom dance teacher. It brings him nothing but joy to dance, whether it’s in our kitchen, catching a tune in a grocery store, or going to a ballroom to get into the swing of things. His pure delight in dancing is one of the things that attracted me to him in the first place.
On the other hand, the relationship I have with dancing is…complicated. It is one of the areas where I want to get better, yet hold myself back because of many reasons around not feeling ready, not knowing the moves, or just not feeling confident in my skill. I have always wanted to excel in partner-dancing, but in comparing myself to the best dancers on the floor, the negative self-talk kicks in and I find myself searching for dark corners to hide myself in and not be seen.
This past weekend, Chad lightly brought up the invitation to go salsa dancing at a local ballroom- a request that he has mentioned for almost three years (THREE years!). I realized that my fear of not being ready had held me back for a long time, and enough was enough.
I said, “Let’s do it!” and away we went.
Did I make mistakes and struggle on the dance floor? Definitely. Was my inner critic pointing out every mistake? Oh yeah. However, I had just started reading Adam Grant’s new book on Hidden Potential, which shared the idea that making more mistakes is the goal to getting better. So halfway through my inner dialogue of doubt, I told myself to apply what I was reading; to let go of the need to compare and be perfect and to accept that I was going to make mistakes.
And what do you know…I felt a bit lighter, I started enjoying myself, and as we left after a few hours of dancing, I felt excited for the next time we could go out and make a few more silly mistakes on the dance floor.
QUESTION OF THE DAY
What area in your life could benefit from a few more mistakes?