We've heard this, or something vaguely similar, over and over. Or even something like:
"We learn something new everyday"
Yes, those two statements are true. Yesterday, I learned that ground ivy actually crawled on the ground. I thought each leafy thing had it's own roots. See I learned something! Cool. But that's forced learning, I'm not really interested in ground ivies, I actually want to get rid of them on my lawn and tried to rip them off the ground to find out, to my amazement, that they came in bunches.
Not very long ago, I realized that I have a bad memory. I've never been able to remember names easily, phone numbers don't even ask me and historical dates are things of the past in my head. I'm not saying I'm dumb. I know a lot of things, but usually general concepts. Everything logic, I'm your man, I'm the king of coherence, rational and deduction but I don't know your name.
So what? That's me, I was made like that.
Thing is. That's not true, the true statement would read like this instead: That's me, I AM like that. I have a bad memory because I never put any effort in remembering thing, that is up to this day. It is impossible to be perfect after your childhood but for some reason, a lot of people think that because they did not acquire a particular skill when they were young that it's not them and they can't learn it anymore. Here are some phrases you hear often:
"I'd like to make good meals but I can't cook."
"Wow, you're lucky, you can play the guitar. I wish I could but my parent didn't play any instruments when I was young."
Blaming your parents or your childhood for not being able to do something today won't help you. The idea of being magically able to master something in an instant and without effort all crosses our minds, but it's far from the reality. Whatever age you are you can learn and master something. The secret behind it is practice, practice, practice and the will to learn.
Think back about a time when you were deeply passionate about something. How much space it took, in your mind and in your life. Have you spent days trying to do something as stupid as it was? I devoted days trying to be a ninja. It didn't work in the end but I was passionate about it. I learned how to tie a ninja mask with a piece of cloth... but I forgot. Darn memory! If only I could tap into that passion today.
Sure, with adult responsibilities it's not easy to try to master the guitar for countless hours. It takes discipline and passion. And a lot less TV and Facebook.
Back to my memory problem. It's funny how clueless I was when memorizing stuff. I've started some lessons and read a bit about it. I almost gave up at the first exercise after reading the techniques. I had to remember 24 completely random words without the use of pen and paper then write them down in order they were written. I can't even remember a phone number. I thought that was crazy, I almost burnt the whole thing. But after much debate I decided to give it a try...
Phone, Cupboard, TV, Cup, Plate, Dog, Fridge, Can, Helmet, Wallpaper, Leaves, Sweater, Shoulder strap, Cake, Lemon, Bike, Handkerchief, Tea, Program, Tape Recorder, Tap, Window, Sugar
Ok, that's only 23, but it was last week that I did the exercise. I've just barely put a few hours effort so far and it's already paying off.
Yes life is about learning, but it's up to you to make it about learning things YOU want to learn and improve.
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