Let yourself be bad at things
Let yourself be bad at things
It'll lead to more motivation (and happiness), weš¤š½
Hey there,
DD HQ here. Has the word āmediocreā ever made you cringe - or worse?
For a variety of reasons in our world today, the idea of being just okay at something can seem like the ultimate failure. Whether itās related to our work āsuccessā or our overall well-being, thereās always a glimmer of potential improvement thatās just around the corner.
Especially at this time of year, every newsletter, article or podcast seems to be littered with a twinge of self-development. If you only applied to one more job, decluttered your inbox to zero, or got yourself off your phone for more than five seconds, youād be able to completely transform your life, they say.
Weāre being slightly facetious, but if this is hitting you in the gut - donāt consider us mind-readers. The overachieving-to-burnout pipeline is a hallmark of our modern culture. And, we - Katina and Dupi - are recovering (very active) participants of the burnout hamster wheel.
So, thatās why weāre here to tell you that the opposite message is just as powerful, from both a scientific and personal POV - itās time to let ourselves be bad at more things, more often.
This idea isnāt just nice on the surface; itās actually at the basis of neuroplasticity, creative thinking and mental flexibility. Even more, itās the core tenant of the Daydreamers ecosystem.
Our members have spent millions of minutes collectively creating just for the fun of it. And the one aspect thatās had the most impact on their lives writ large? Giving themselves permission to try more things, regardless of the outcome.
And we have the receipts to back it up.
Before we get into it, did you know that when you set a goal, your brain actually registers that future, imagined self as your current reality?
Sounds trippy, we know. But, think about it this way: when we set a goal, no matter how big or small, our brain kicks off a cycle of neurotransmitters in order to get us motivated to do something about it.
The journey begins almost immediately, even if youāre still sitting on your couch. The moment you imagine a goal, your brain is already on a pathway towards restructuring itself completely. Cue the honeymoon period of dopamine, serotonin and oxytocin to hype us up & start getting stuff done.
But, hereās the part that often trips us up: When we donāt achieve that goal in the timeline or manner that we imagined, our brain begins a spiral in the opposite direction. We lose motivation and even self-esteem.
You know the rest - in part, thatās likely why your knitting yarn is still sitting in the corner from last January, or your unfinished book is half-written in a Word doc you canāt bare to look at.
The enemy isnāt procrastination or even ālaziness.ā Itās our overachieving, perfectionist minds.
But, the answer isnāt quitting goal-setting altogether. If you talk to any creativity expert - in the scientific realm or someone who has spent thousands of hours exercising their creative brain - their advice is often simple: Just get started. Donāt worry about the output.
Thatās because, scientifically, creative expression kicks off a virtuous cycle in our brains. Getting into the creative flow is one of the only ways we can throw our mind fully into the present moment and reduce all forms of self-consciousness. From there, we experience a rush of good feelings, enjoyment and inspiration.
Do you understand how powerful that is?! It amazes us (srsly) every time we think about it. Just by creating - regardless of how āgoodā or ābadā we think we are - we become more confident, motivated and excited to try doing it again.
The bottom line is simple: the more fun weāre having, the less we care about being bad at something. We couldnāt sum up a more apt description of our mission at Daydreamers if we tried.
Are you ready to let your brain do the hard work, and live a more creative, fun + fulfilling life with us? Same here. Early Access to DD is only open for a little while longer - make sure youāve signed up to jump the line and build creative, curious habits together this year.
Most importantly, we canāt wait to be bad at more things, more often š
Katina + Dupi
and the entire team @ DD HQ
Being open to trying things is the new ābeing the best at something.ā If youāre here for this type of energy in 2023 - make sure to jump the line + start your year with a confidence-boosting creative habit. Jump the line to get access to the next DD cohort.
An idea to noodle on š
Being bad at stuff doesnāt mean giving up
THINK ON THIS: And, we can even amp up our confidence just by being creative. Seriously. One of the core elements of entering a creative flow state is reducing our self-consciousness and removing our āego.ā This isnāt just a momentary thing either; the more we do it, the more confident we become.
ā¦MAYBE NOT THAT: Caring less about the outcome and not achieving your goals are two different things. Often, we conflate the idea of not being āperfectā with not accomplishing what we set out to do - but itās actually the opposite. By letting ourselves engage in something consistently, regardless of the output, we activate the endocannabinoids in our brain - which helps us turn conscious actions into unconscious behaviors. Sounds easier than the world makes it seem, right?
Inside our brains at DD HQ Ā š§
Hereās to dancing no matter how old we get. Itās time to reframe ambition. Weāre all for this realistic form of poetry (and meal-prep, are we right). As adults, are snow days a permission slip to rest + do nothing? DD class field trip to the worldās largest (and newest) photography library.
Ideas from the DD Crew šø
Weāre pumped to be sharing more content with you - and the world - in 2023. Our co-founder, Katina, wrote a piece for Health.com about how to activate your naturally creative brain when building new habits. Tell us what you think - and what other ideas youāre curious to learn more about this year!