You Are Never 100% Ready

A few days ago, I went to the boxing gym with my friend. It was his first time to box his entire life and he really surprised me when we wanted to spar with his trainer. Most people I know who do boxing training trains for a few months or weeks at least before even considering to spar with someone, and my friend wanted to try it immediately. He said he wanted to "know his initial level." At first I thought he was a fool, but then I awed at his bravery and confidence in himself. I then realized when I went home that when I started to do boxing, I was never ready to try it either. I was afraid that I would hurt my hands and my body would ache the day after. After I did try it though, I felt amazing. I felt like I can do any type of martial art after.

Here's a little secret to life that I learned: You are never 100% ready for anything. You just got to try it first and then as people say, "wing it" or "lean into it." You will learn on the process while making mistakes and getting experience for yourself. Most people wait until they are "truly ready" but that never is the case. No matter how much practice or preparation we do for something, we are always nervous before the performance. We are always even a little nervous before a speech, a final exam, a presentation, a competition, a date, etc. People who say that they aren't nervous are either lying or have no feelings or emotions. 

So whenever you want to try something or anything, always remember that you will never be 100% ready. The most important thing is to take the first step which is to simply just try it or do it. In the famous motto of Nike: "Just do it."

Images source: jackcanfield.com and https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.pinterest.com/amp/harperchildrens/the-world-of-lemony-snicket/?source=images

Make Those Mistakes!

Everybody makes mistakes, we're all human after all. Even when we were a baby, we made a lot of mistakes when we were learning how to walk, but we eventually learned after so many falls. When we were a kid and we were learning how to ride a bike, we fell and scraped our knees or legs, but we eventually learned after so many bruises and scars. When we started school and we learned how to read and write, after so many miswritten letters, misspelled words, and mispronounciations, we eventually learned how to read a whole book and write whole sentences and paragraphs. If you don't make a mistake, then you don't learn. We somehow forget this when we grow older. We are afraid of looking like a fool in front of other people, but we must always remember this. Every mistake you make you will be one step closer to learning and mastering any skill.

Caveat: I'm not saying you should keep making the same mistakes again. You should learn from your mistakes as quickly as possible to avoid committing them again the next time.

Image source: https://www.50-best.com/albert_einstein_quotes/pics/never_made_a_mistake.htm

The Art of Small Wins and Compounding

The art of small wins is the art of improving a little bit each day. Every day you spend a little bit of your time, usually an hour, into improving any skill you want to work on. If you improve by 1% each day, you can improve 365% in a year. In time, these small wins can compound into big wins. Here are a few examples:

•If you start drawing and you draw every day, you will eventually draw masterpieces.

•If you start playing basketball and you play regularly, you will eventually become your team's MVP.

•If you start reading a book and you read a few pages a day, you will eventually finish the book in a few weeks, maybe even just a week.

•If you start running and you run a few times a week, you will eventually start running in marathons.

Stop Worrying

In my life I've worried about a lot of things. I've worried if I could graduate or get a job. I've worried if I could actually lose weight. I've worried if I could ride a scary roller coaster. I've worried and worried, and honestly, it was rather pointless that I worried. When I actually did the things I mentioned above, I've realized that the time before I did them was actually a lot scarier than when I was actually doing them. Also, I worried if things can actually get worse or if the worst case scenario actually happened, and they didn't! Worrying is a waste of time because even if something bad happens, it's not as bad as you think! These are the things that actually happened in the situations above:

1. I graduated, but I was two years delayed
2. I got my first job three months after I graduated, but it was not in line with my degree
3. I lost weight, but it took me about 8 months losing and gaining weight back and forth
4. I rode my first big roller coaster in 2011 and I almost puked

Worrying is a waste of time and energy. You will waste your happiness on worrying about useless things. The last thing I want to say about worrying is that when you worry, you're actually not trusting God or the universe that will let you live a great life.

Stop worrying and start hoping. Be excited about your future and trust that it will be great.

Picture credit: www.lifehack.org