Think back to the last time you tried something you had absolutely no experience of. Perhaps you took up a new interest, attempted a practical skill or found yourself in a situation where you genuinely didn't know what you were doing.
For some people, that happens quite regularly. For others, it can be surprisingly difficult to remember.
As we progress through our careers, we naturally become more capable at what we do. We develop knowledge, build experience and become accustomed to handling situations that might once have seemed daunting. Other people begin to rely on our expertise, and we grow comfortable with knowing what we're doing. There is a great deal of satisfaction in that. But I wonder whether becoming good at things can sometimes make us less willing to be bad at something new.
When we're younger, being inexperienced is generally expected. We ask questions, make mistakes and gradually learn how things work. Later in life, particularly when we've spent years developing professional credibility, returning to that position can feel rather uncomfortable. We may find ourselves avoiding activities where we won't immediately be competent. Perhaps there's a course we'd like to take, an unfamiliar responsibility we'd like to explore or something entirely outside work that has interested us for years. We tell ourselves we haven't got the time, although sometimes the prospect of being a complete beginner is part of what puts us off.
I think there's something interesting about the expectations we develop of ourselves. We may be perfectly happy to encourage a younger colleague who is learning something new, reassuring them that mistakes are part of the process. Yet when we're the ones struggling with an unfamiliar task, we can be considerably less patient.
Experience doesn't have to make us cautious. Many people continue to explore new interests and develop unfamiliar skills throughout their lives. But it is worth noticing whether our established competence has begun to influence what we're prepared to attempt.
Trying something new can remind us what learning actually feels like. The instructions that seem perfectly clear to an expert may be confusing to a beginner. Progress can be uneven, and things that look simple when somebody else does them may prove unexpectedly difficult.
There can be something rather useful about experiencing that again, especially if part of your work involves helping other people develop. It may make you more aware of how much patience learning requires, and how easily we forget the effort involved once something has become second nature.
There is pleasure to be had in discovering an interest or ability that has nothing to do with our existing professional identity. We don't have to be particularly talented at everything we try, and not every new activity needs to lead to an achievement or qualification.
Questions to Consider
When did you last try something you had no previous experience of?
Is there an interest or activity you've been putting off because you wouldn't know where to begin?
Have you become less comfortable with being inexperienced as your career has progressed?
What might you enjoy learning if you weren't concerned about being good at it?
Try This This Week
Choose something unfamiliar that you've been curious about, however small. It might be a practical skill, a creative activity or something you've always assumed other people are better suited to. Find a simple way to begin, without setting yourself a target or worrying about how well you perform. Notice what it's like to be learning again, particularly the moments when you feel uncertain or make a mistake.
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