You Can Learn New Things
We have filled out "goal sheets" with our kids on New Year's Eve for the last 10 years. Our older kids read through them in the lead up to the New Year. There are four categories on the sheets along with frames and pictures to color. The four categories are: What I want to read, what food I want to try, what I want to learn, and what I want to do.
We personalize them in different ways. Some people write down multiple goals in each category. Some write down a food like lobster, tomatoes, or buffalo. Others write down dishes or international cuisines. Some write down a book to read. Other write down a number of books to read.
What I love about these New Year goal sheets is that they focus on this we want to learn and do. Goals work better if they are about skills to learn. I've learned from 10 years of these sheets that I can learn new things and these sheets are best if I focus on skills not outcomes. Last year, I relearned to write in cursive. I learned all the notes on the guitar. I learned to draw by practicing a little each day for a month.
I often hear that it is impossible to learn ________. You can't learn a language very well if you aren't young. You can't learn an instrument if you didn't start early, etc.
I think it is all bogus. You can learn. People learn all the time. They learn skills. They learn languages. They play musical instruments. The problem most of us have is that we require perfection of ourselves that we don't require of other people.
I know a lot of people that speak English well but have an accent. I don't look down on them. Why would I despise myself if I speak another language with an accent? I know many people who play piano without giving concerts. Why can't I learn an instrument if I won't be a professional?
Dr. Jerry Root once said, "anything worth doing is worth doing poorly," His point was that it is worth sharing the gospel even if you don't do it perfectly. That applies in so many areas. You can learn to paint even if your paintings don't hang in a museum. You can learn a language even if all you can do is order your meal in the language. You can learn to juggle even if you never join the circus.
It's not too late.