Dabbling in different activities has taught me a key lesson. You will be terrible at whatever you try for the first six or so hours. Kick your ego aside, accept this period of uselessness, be brave and walk through that door. Do not be embarrassed. Everyone started at the beginning, just as you are now doing. Take a friend along if this gives you extra confidence. Be nice to the others there as this could be their first time too. Smile and enjoy those six hours of terribleness because once this initial learning is over with, it can never return. No one cares that you are not the best and, if someone is upset by your newness, remember it is only their opinion and their own issue to work through. Often this learning process will be the most enjoyable part of your new pastime.
You won’t love everything you try but everything you try will make you that much more interesting and gives you something to talk about. I’ve tried cake decorating, chocolate making, computer building, wine-making, short story writing, flying, dancing, acting, singing, karate, water-skiing and quite a few things more. Which ones am I still doing? None of the above – except for the singing – love the singing. Did I love them all? At the time, absolutely. But I was terrible at flying – I had to give this pastime away otherwise I would have ended up dead and probably taking a few people out with me. I was useless at computer building. I didn’t think this activity would be that difficult. The classroom was full of avid computer tragics and me. The tragics were all very keen and committed. I was not. So that hobby lasted only a couple of lessons. But it did give me bragging rights for a short time! I loved karate and will go back to that one – great for fitness, mental stimulation and offering a feeling of self-worth. That activity lasted nearly five years and I would recommend trying martial arts to anyone. The waterskiing initial lesson saw me nearly chop off my legs so wouldn’t recommend trying boating and skiing unless you learn from experts. And the wine-making was fun but I now prefer to enjoy a glass of wine made by people that are skilled in what they are doing.
Everything you try gets you out of your comfort zone for a while, allows you to meet some different people and branch out from your routine for a time. You will be completely hopeless at what you are learning for the first 6 lessons (so usually only around 6 hours). If you can get past this feeling of inadequacy and vulnerability for this short time, a whole world of experience will open up for you. Try different things to do!