Tag: gut

Learning By Falling Down

“I learn by falling down.”

The above words came to me today from a ten-year old boy named Rocco. I was observing him riding his Hoverboard and couldn’t help but notice his skill. Moving from room to room, or grabbing a snack from the fridge, he just moved effortlessly. I asked him how he learned to maneuver so well, and that’s when gave me the secret.

Learning by falling down is pretty straight forward for a ten-year old. He hasn’t accumulated all the baggage and wounds many adults have. He pretty much wants to be good at his art and sees falling down as an effective tool for learning. Did he ever get embarrassed or want to quit? I would think so, but accomplishing the mission/goal meant more to him than calling it quits.

I’m led to the following:

  • What makes you nervous about falling down?
  • Have you stopped for a moment to examine how much baggage you’ve been lugging around?
  • Are you addressing the wounds? By the way, everyone has at least a few.
  • What would life look like if you fell down more often.

Rocco’s approach is sound to get some success. The key is trusting your gut and the system (i.e. doing this will result in…).

I think I’m going to find some more ten-year olds to hang around with.

Getting Involved In Something You Shouldn’t

There's a trap out there, actually a lot of traps, around getting involved in things you shouldn't.  It ranges from career, relationships, business ideas/plans, and much more.

The premise of why people do this is not easily figured out, but when it happens you can usually find self-deceit nearby.  The idea of telling yourself a lie in order to do something in the moment.  Just the moment and no further.  You find yourself regretting it every time.

One of the ways I've found effective in minimizing the number of times I make the mistake of mis-involvement, is to check my God-given peace meter.  For example, I sometimes get pitches to get involved with a business venture.  If I find myself debating or squirming inside, I know it's time to stop.  It doesn't mean I'll never do it.  It just means "right now" is not going to work.

The worst mistake is to move into self-deception and convince yourself that you should do something when everything in you says stop.  Your gut is worth listening to.