“When I was 15, I spent a month working on an archeological dig. I was talking to one of the archeologists one day during our lunch break and he asked those kinds of “getting to know you” questions you ask young people: Do you play sports? What’s your favourite subject? And I told him, no I don’t play any sports. I do theatre, I’m in choir, I play the violin and piano, I used to take art classes.
And he went WOW. That’s amazing! And I said, “Oh no, but I’m not any good at ANY of them.”
And he said something then that I will never forget and which absolutely blew my mind because no one had ever said anything like it to me before: “I don’t think being good at things is the point of doing them. I think you’ve got all these wonderful experiences with different skills, and that all teaches you things and makes you an interesting person, no matter how well you do them.”
And that honestly changed my life. Because I went from a failure, someone who hadn’t been talented enough at anything to excel, to someone who did things because I enjoyed them. I had been raised in such an achievement-oriented environment, so inundated with the myth of Talent, that I thought it was only worth doing things if you could “Win” at them.”
Kurt Vonnegut
POINT: Lots of things are worth doing because they bring you joy, and for no other reason. Do them, enjoy them, be fulfilled.
Do creative things that make you happy!
That’s so true ..I love playing bridge ..but my partner and I nearly always come last ..I just say theres always next week 🤣
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Always a next time. And one day you most likely won’t come last, Alison. But that isn’t the point, as Kurt’s friend said. It reminds me of the adage, ‘it is the journey not the destination that’s important.’ I am not sure who I can attribute that to. Do you know?
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Ralph Waldo Emerson
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Thank you! You are better than google!
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Haha ..I cheated it was Google
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haha!
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Yes!
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So true do it because you really enjoy it.. 😉
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That is the key, Lisa.
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There’s nice, Amanda ! 🙂
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Wise words that need to be shared, M-R.
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Just what I needed, today.
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Serendipitous. I love those moments when words and poignant phrases come to us when we most need them. It is like the universe is looking out for us.
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archeological
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I don’t know what you mean?
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I think she found a spelling mistake
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Really?
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Wise words. Kurt Vonnegut is the source of some very good, very pithy wisdom.
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Very pithy Graham. Well worth a read.
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That is so so so true. That’s why I am not teaching in a school where achievement is the be-all and end-all for everything. I have always set goals for myself, but that’s just me, but to have to exell in everything or be competitive in everything? No. I like doing things or going places for the fun and enjoyment of it.
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That is the most important part. If we are always looking ahead, we are missing out on enjoying and experiencing the present moment, which is the whole aim. Gearing one’s life towards achieving a goal is flawed as even that moment of achievement will swiftly become a memory.
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A lovely post Amanda. I have the confidence to do things now just because I enjoy doing them. I wished I’d had that confidence when I was younger.
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I hear you, Chris. I so wish I had the tenacity, wisdom and confidence to speak up for myself years ago. I would have saved myself a lot of pain and suffering. But life is a journey and that is perhaps what lessons we needed to learn in life. I think you sound like a very wise lady, so I doubt that you could have been radically different years ago.
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