Why it’s good to be bad at things

Without wanting to sound incredibly conceited, I was pretty good at what I did in Southampton.  In my day job I was an accountant, and most of my clients and employers seemed to think I did a decent job. For fitness, I spent my time teaching and participating in bodycombat and dance fitness classes, both of which I had done for years and felt comfortable with. People seemed to enjoy my classes and I loved teaching them, and felt that I was pretty good at what I was doing.

Here, on the other hand, I’ve noticed that I am not good at anything! It’s all new to me. I am doing things like building fires, cooking and gardening. Any of my friends who have lived with me will tell you that I am far from a domestic goddess! Cooking and gardening do not come naturally to me! And even after a fair few attempts I still cannot seem to grasp the art of building a successful fire. Sigh. Fitness wise, there are no gyms within 2 hours of me that have classes, so I’m having to find new ways to exercise. Exercise is all outdoors here, and don’t get me wrong, I love that and it’s a big part of the reason we moved. Going for a run or bike ride through mountains and rivers is amazing. But – I am not good it!! My runs barely fit the description – they are definitely more of a jog. And my bike rides tend to slow down to a similar speed whenever I hit an hill!

As I am something of a perfectionist, I have been finding this a bit hard to get used to. It’s difficult for me to suddenly be spending all of my time doing things I don’t feel comfortable or confident with. I have had a few wobbly moments with this until this week when it occurred to me that actually

this is a good thing!

After all, this is an adventure. The whole point of the move was to leave behind our old, predictable lives and office jobs, and try new things. There is a reason I was good at stuff I did in Southampton – it was because I was stuck in a rut doing the same things I had done for years. Being shit at something means I’m trying something new. It means I’m stretching myself out of my comfort zone. It means I’m learning new skills and finding new things to enjoy. So, I’m trying to embrace it. It’s good to be bad at things!