Be brave enough to be bad at something new.

There’s a quiet kind of bravery that rarely gets celebrated – the courage to be bad at something new. You often forget that mastery begins with mediocrity. Or maybe even with failure, awkwardness, and frustration. The moment you step into the unfamiliar can be terrifying.

Whether it’s trying to learn a new language, picking up an instrument, changing careers, or walking into your first gym session – why don’t more people try new things? Well…

• It takes vulnerability – exposing your ego to potential embarrassment
• There’s a certain fear of looking foolish or not being good — which can be paralyzing
• Humans have been conditioned to avoid discomfort – and in a world where people share only the highlight reels of their lives, it’s easy to feel like you’re the only one struggling.

It’s important to remember that every expert was once a beginner who stumbled, got frustrated, and kept going anyway.

What if you redefined bravery?

Bravery isn’t just running into burning buildings or speaking on stage to thousands. Sometimes, bravery is signing up for a class even though you feel out of place. It’s writing the first awkward paragraph of the novel that’s been in your head for years. It’s painting even when you know your proportions are off. It’s lacing up your shoes and going for a jog, even though you haven’t run in years.

Being brave enough to be bad at something is the first step toward being great at it. Three tips to help you do this:

1.     Let go of perfectionism – it is the enemy of progress. When you hold yourself to impossibly high standards right from the start, you miss out on the joy of learning, the small victories, and the messy, wonderful process of growth. The truth is you don’t need to be good to begin. You just need to begin. The skills, the confidence, and the “goodness” come later. Often, much later.

2.     Have the power of curiosity over ego – approach something new with curiosity instead of judgment. Ask: What can I learn here? instead of How good do I look doing it? When you replace ego with openness, you unlock the freedom to experiment, explore, and improve. Children do this naturally. They fall, they laugh, they try again. They don’t shame themselves for not being perfect. Somewhere along the way, adults lose that freedom. You can choose to reclaim it.

3.     Remember, you don’t have to earn the right to try – you don’t need to justify your interest or prove you’ll be good at something before you’re “allowed” to pursue it. You can try things just because they call to you. You can follow curiosity without a clear goal. You can do things badly and enjoy them anyway. Learning something new doesn’t require talent — just willingness.

There can be something quietly radical, even healing, about allowing yourself to try something new that you know you may not be good at – and doing it anyway.

It’s also important to reevaluate the measurement of “good.” Gold stars, grades, trophies, likes, followers – they’re all metrics that can tell you whether you’re “good” at something. Over time, this mindset hardens, and you may quit or pivot. Why keep going if you’re not excelling? This is how you end up afraid to even try. Afraid to draw, dance, sing, play sports, learn languages – not because you don’t want to, but because you’re afraid of being bad. Afraid of looking foolish. Afraid of judgment, especially your own.

There’s an old root in the word amateur – it comes from the Latin amator, meaning “lover.” To do something as an amateur is to do it for the love of it. No pressure to be the best. No expectations of profit. Just love. That’s a radically different lens than the performance-based culture many of us are used to. Reclaim the joy of being an amateur.

Being “bad” at something can unlock a sense of freedom. When you release the need to be impressive, you make space for curiosity, growth, and, most importantly, joy. You also expand your identity beyond the narrow roles you may have boxed yourself into. When you do something unexpected or new, these things don’t need to be shared, praised, or perfected. They just need to be done.

Doing something new you’re not good at can:

• Build humility – reminding you what it’s like to be new at something, which can help you better support others in learning
• Reduce perfectionism – practicing imperfection can loosen the grip of impossible standards
• Cultivate creativity – when outcomes don’t matter, experimentation thrives
• Provide stress relief – the act of doing, without perfecting, can be deeply meditative
• Reconnect you with yourself – sometimes, what you’re “bad” at is something your inner child once loved.

The world needs more people to do things badly – out loud, on purpose. Who sing off-key in karaoke bars. Who join dance classes with two left feet. Who try painting for the first time at 45. These people remind the rest of us that “failure” isn’t fatal. That fun doesn’t have to be polished. That you don’t need permission to play.

Try it. Be bad at something new. And do it anyway. The point isn’t to be good. The point is to be alive – to be brave – a bravery that often goes unnoticed. Be “bad” – awkward, unsure, and possibly a bit embarrassed.

It’s a bravery you can redefine, one bold gesture at a time.  You’re not necessarily running into burning buildings; but you are speaking truth to power. This may perhaps be one of the most underrated acts of courage – starting something new, knowing full well you won’t be good at it. At least, not yet.

“Start ugly.” Your first attempts will likely be rough. Clumsy. But that’s not just okay; it’s necessary. Remember, no one gets to mastery without passing through mediocrity. Every expert was once a beginner. Every admired artist once made terrible art. Every confident speaker once stumbled over their words. Starting ugly is not a detour; it’s the only route.

When you allow yourself to be bad at something, you grant yourself the gift of possibility. You might discover a hidden talent. Or maybe you won’t, but you’ll grow in patience, humility, and resilience. You’ll stop letting perfection be the enemy of progress. You’ll build self-trust. The kind that says, “I can handle discomfort. I can try without guarantees. I can be a beginner.” That mindset is powerful, and it seeps into every area of your life.

Take the class. Pick up the instrument. Speak the language. Even if you mess it up. Step into the gym, the studio, the unfamiliar. Be bad – spectacularly, proudly bad – at something that lights a spark in you.

Being brave enough to be bad at something new is how you become bold enough to be great at anything!

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