Tag: learning

There’s not just “one” right way of doing things

If you find yourself stressing over making a decision, realize three things…

1) There are almost always multiple “right” ways of doing things. One way may provide the best results, but many factors help make an outcome better/worse. Don’t waste time or energy stressing yourself out deciding between two (or more) good choices.

2) We can never 100% know which action will lead to the best possible outcome. All you can do is try your best and make what appears to be the smartest decision with the information you currently have. Hindsight is 20/20. So if you find out that the decision you opted against might not have been the best, that’s ok. Just keep that in mind for future experiences.

3) Chances are, this choice will not change the outcome of your life. Yes, little decisions stack on top of each other and can lead to a snowball effect (good or bad), but if you mess up this one time, you likely won’t even remember it in a year (let alone next month or maybe even next week).

Strive for more problems

Each year, you should be lucky enough to have earned new problems. Hopefully, that means that you’ve grown so much in the past year that you are facing new challenges and a new set of problems.

If you get to the end of the year and you’re facing the same old problems you’ve faced in the past, you didn’t learn and grow from those enough in the past to be able to eliminate those now (or in the future).

Tackle your old and current problems. Make sure they never come back. But grow so much within this next year that you end up facing a new set of “problems.”

We don’t want a life completely void of challenges. That would be boring. We want obstacles to overcome. We feel good when we solve problems and feel like we’ve earned our success. Don’t be complacent. And don’t be upset when you face new problems…only be upset if you’re facing old problems.

Types of intelligence and learning from others

We are all much more similar in intelligence levels than most people believe. I think the people who grade better in the classroom might naturally be more inclined have more “book smarts,” but it’s not because they are smarter individuals. I think that it’s a learned skill that their environment has allowed them to pick up more quickly than others. Maybe their parents spent more time reading with them, asking them questions, letting them work through problems instead of just answering the questions for them or jumping in at the first sign of struggle. It’s how we focus and where we dedicate our time and energy.

But just because someone doesn’t earn good grades doesn’t mean they aren’t smart. They could be very good with people skills and be a great salesperson or even a great leader. They could be very good with their hands and be an amazing mechanic or carpenter. Meanwhile, the people with good grades may be lacking in those areas.

The point is, dot discredit someone’s intelligence just because they don’t see things the way you do. Where you have an advantage in certain areas, you’re likely lacking in others. Make sure to keep an open mind. You can learn something from anyone.

Learning from your mistakes

Learn to forgive yourself. If you mess up, that’s OK. If you keep making the same mistakes, that’s not OK. You need to learn from your mistakes.

Forgive yourself when you mess up because we are all human and we all matter. But if you keep messing up and doing the same thing over and over again, eventually it’s not just a once off. That is a habit that you have formed and you need to get rid of it. Always work to improve yourself.

Facing your fears – incrementally vs all at once

The way I see it, there are two ways to successfully face your fears. You can gradually/incrementally introduce yourself to your fears (taking baby steps – learning more about it first, then being around it, then facing it in an unimportant situation, then facing it more regularly) OR you can dive right in and surround yourself with them. The best approach depends on how devastating the outcome could be and what your mindset is.

If there are irreversible repercussions to you failing, then you should take the gradual approach. Read about what you are going to face, talk with other people who have conquered that fear, listen to books/podcasts/YouTube videos, etc. Then just go and be around whatever you have to face. You don’t need to face it yet, but the nearer you are, the more acclimated you’ll get. Start by going once per week then increase the frequency. As you become more familiar with the event, your fear levels will likely go down.

If the stakes are low if you fail/mess up, it’s probably best to just jump right in and learn on the fly. Learning is often done best by experiencing. Then you can still read, listen, talk with others, and watch others to learn more, but now you’ll have a better understanding of what they’re going through (because you’ve already been through a similar situation). You will speed up your learning curve by doing. Just make sure you have a growth mindset going into the event. You may not be good at whatever it is you’re trying to accomplish/conquer yet, but with enough practice you can/will get better.