The Beauty in Being a Beginner

This summer I’ve been reading through Emily Freeman’s book: The Next Right Thing: A Simple, Soulful Practice for Making Life Decisions.  One of her chapters is titled ‘Be a Beginner.’ The gist of the chapter is it’s okay to be new at something and to admit you don’t have all the answers.

I so related to this chapter! Though I’ve now been blogging for one year, I still very much feel like a beginner in the blogosphere. There’s so much to learn when starting a blog… between SEO, website design, creating graphics and much more.

If I knew the mountain of information there was to learn about blogging when I first set out on this journey, I may have thrown in the towel. So I’m thankful I took that first step, and let myself be a beginner.

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Along with just celebrating my one-year blogiversary, we also recently hit the three-year mark of living in our new home (and state).

Shortly after we moved, I remember someone telling me it takes 3 years to get acclimated and for lack of a better term “not feel like a beginner”.  I found that discouraging at the time, but it was helpful advice nonetheless.

Whenever I would feel disappointed that we weren’t plugging in as fast we would’ve liked to, I was able to remind myself… “three years.”  And the crazy thing is, it was so true! We are just now starting to feel not so “green” in our new surroundings.

And as much as it would have been amazing to skip this process of “being the new kid in town”, or for any time when something is new, I think there are valuable lessons to be learned while “being a beginner.”

The power of yet…

This past year I had my kids do an exercise called the “Power of Yet”. They had to think of and draw pictures in comic strip form, of something they were able to do that at one point they weren’t able to do.  One chose learning to swim, and one chose learning to read.

 

 

 

 

 

 

This was a POWERFUL exercise that I still remind them of often because it teaches something that is so true.  You have to be a beginner FIRST.

It’s part of the process.

And can’t we all think of thing of “power of yet” instances in our lives?

I know I can!

I think back to a few times when I felt REALLY green…

My first job (McDonald’s),

my student teaching experience,

working at a bakery when I really didn’t have any baking experience (there may have been one time I used pounds of flour rather than cups! Oops!),

parenting,

cooking,

and too many more to name.

It takes time to learn new things. When we approach new situations this way, with the anticipation that it will take time, we can give ourselves some grace, and breathe a little.

Being a beginner grows our empathy & humility

For instance, our move to Wisconsin has helped everyone in our family better be able to relate to people that may be new in town, new on the job, new on the team, etc.

It has grown our ability to empathize with others.

When we’re beginners, there’s so much for us to learn.  We don’t “know it all.”

Being a beginner forces us to be in teachable mode rather than expert mode.

Being a beginner is good for our kids to witness.

When our kids see us being beginners, there is a powerful lesson at play. We show that one can always learn new things and that you don’t need to be boxed into what you’ve always done.

And that even though it’s scary, being a beginner is part of the process.

When we learn something new, we are showing our kids what it is to be a lifelong learner, and that there is joy in learning new things.

We show that learning doesn’t stop.  That can apply to anything… blogging, Bible Study, gardening, cooking, painting, learning a new sport, etc. etc..

And it’s OKAY that it may take time to learn that new thing.

Is there something new you want to try?

Go ahead, try it!  And allow yourself to be a beginner.