If your response when you taste failure is to beat yourself up, it is natural that you will eventually fear failing.
But, isn’t that what we all do?
Maximizing learn-rate is on top of my mind as I had 2 days of ski lessons this week. After an encouraging first day, I had a challenging second day. And, as we progressed to a slightly tougher slope, I found it much harder to execute what I thought I’d learnt. For a good few minutes, I began wondering why I wasn’t getting it and, soon, I felt paralyzed. Negative self talk is the first step of a cycle that takes us nowhere.
The next step was to reverse the self talk and just try again.
It went better. I need more of that as I practice today.
My understanding of the situation is that my skill level is just what it is. Self talk isn’t going to improve it. But, as I start learning a new skill, there are many insecurities that get in the way of performing at the skill level I am at. It takes a while to build the confidence required to shove the insecurities aside. And, negative self talk is as potent a confidence destroyer as they come.
This post in one line? To learn better, be kind to yourself.
A Learning a Day 