“Anything worth doing is worth doing well”.
Has anyone said that to you before? Sure, they have. No doubt you heard it spoken by a parent, a teacher, a coach, a scout leader, a dance instructor, or anyone who wanted you to excel in life. It’s a good phrase. It’s an inspiring phrase. It’s an encouraging phrase. It’s a good phrase.
Or is it?
This past winter, I decided to take up curling. I’m not sure why, other than it looked like a lot of fun, and it was played on a Sunday afternoon, which was a good time for me. On a whim, I signed up. It is not false modesty to say that I was terrible. I really was. After the first session, I was ready to return to my previous sport of choice, couch surfing.
Not one to give up, I persisted, and by the end of the season, I had graduated from “terrible” to “not-quite-so-terrible.” Now, I’m looking forward to next season, when I may achieve the lofty heights of “slightly below average.”
I had always been taught that anything worth doing is worth doing well. I appreciated that lesson because it instilled a sense of pride in what I could achieve. It also gave me a work ethic that guides me to this day. But if I’m honest, it was at times a barrier. It meant I was reluctant to get involved in anything that didn’t match my skill set. I used to think, “if I can’t be the best, why try at all?”.
Curling changed all that for me. It taught me that excellence is not the bar I should be reaching for; rather, experience is. The more I can experience in life, the richer my life will become.
So, my new motto is, “Anything worth doing is worth doing poorly”.
I invite you to install this new update onto your mental hard drive and let it guide you as it opens a world of possibilities. Untethered from the need for excellence or perfection, you can now focus on the experience itself.
And think about this: even if you miss the golf ball the first time you swing at it or must stop 100 metres into your first attempt at jogging, or over-season your first try at gourmet cooking, you are already way ahead of everyone else who won’t try it for fear of failure.
Podiums and Pedestals are great if you achieve them, but they pale in comparison to the joy that comes from discovering something new about yourself because you dared to try.
Summer is coming, and with it will come opportunities for new experiences. When they present themselves, remind yourself that “anything worth doing is worth doing poorly”, and then have at it!! When it is over, reward yourself with the greatest of all compliments, “I DID IT!!”
