immense cosign, especially to anyone out there feeling like “ohh but i am too old, i have no talent for anything, i am not creative, i don’t know how to art”. tell those thoughts to fuck all the way off, every day if need be (i have to do this!), and try some stuff out! it doesn’t have to take a lot of time or money, it doesn’t have to be “marketable”, you don’t even have to tell anyone else about it if you really don’t want to. you deserve to give yourself this gift (yes, even if your brain says otherwise!)
I was just talking to a coworker yesterday about this. We have some very creative kids where I work, and my coworker was working with a five year old who loves drawing Spiderman. The coworker said something about not being able to draw. I pointed out the kid and mentioned that he’s only been drawing for, what, 3-4 years max? He practices the skill and naturally isn’t perfect, but it all starts with picking up a pencil (or marker, or crayon) and making that first effort.
It may be crude at first, but as the kid shows, it’s not the quality that matters - it’s the desire to create. If you feel that whim, all you have to do is follow it.
Someone asked a Discord server I’m about if they were too old to start learning mandolin. I told them that if they wanted to do world-wide tours then maybe, but if they just want to play mandolin then absolutely fucking not, they’re fine. To their credit, they immediately went “oh yea, true!”
Also the main reason kids learn so well is because they are often fully immersed in whatevee it is(especially languages). Even kids can’t really speak their language perfectly for many years, so we gotta be easier on ourselves when we only have a few hours a week to practice something.
I found that kids being fully immersed in something is also age-related. It’s not just that they have more time than an adult with a job, they also have more energy in general and typically better focus. Plus they’re able to practice things for hours at a time without getting backpain etc.
Age-related but importantly not to do with their brains as that’s what everyone thinks is so important. “I physically cannot perform this task and my brain will refuse to learn it” is talk I’m specifically trying to avoid.
I’m a pretty solid mandolin player, at least for my nearly exactly two years of experience, and that comes from the fact that I lost my job nearly exactly two years ago, three days after buying my first mandolin.
yess, it can be quite a challenge to overcome things like expectations & perfectionist tendencies and embrace play & experimentation, as well as extend compassion to ourselves as tired little creatures trying to get by in a tough world. i still have struggles with that but am very much about giving things a try just because they seem interesting, and not putting any expectations other than “might be fun” on it. it’s ok to just have a chill time & enjoy the journey! ofc it’s also ok to have more ambitious/professional goals but i feel like it doesn’t get said enough that it’s actually fine to be a hobbyist and even to be bad at hobbies (as long as safety is in order anyway).
immense cosign, especially to anyone out there feeling like “ohh but i am too old, i have no talent for anything, i am not creative, i don’t know how to art”. tell those thoughts to fuck all the way off, every day if need be (i have to do this!), and try some stuff out! it doesn’t have to take a lot of time or money, it doesn’t have to be “marketable”, you don’t even have to tell anyone else about it if you really don’t want to. you deserve to give yourself this gift (yes, even if your brain says otherwise!)
I was just talking to a coworker yesterday about this. We have some very creative kids where I work, and my coworker was working with a five year old who loves drawing Spiderman. The coworker said something about not being able to draw. I pointed out the kid and mentioned that he’s only been drawing for, what, 3-4 years max? He practices the skill and naturally isn’t perfect, but it all starts with picking up a pencil (or marker, or crayon) and making that first effort.
It may be crude at first, but as the kid shows, it’s not the quality that matters - it’s the desire to create. If you feel that whim, all you have to do is follow it.
Someone asked a Discord server I’m about if they were too old to start learning mandolin. I told them that if they wanted to do world-wide tours then maybe, but if they just want to play mandolin then absolutely fucking not, they’re fine. To their credit, they immediately went “oh yea, true!”
Also the main reason kids learn so well is because they are often fully immersed in whatevee it is(especially languages). Even kids can’t really speak their language perfectly for many years, so we gotta be easier on ourselves when we only have a few hours a week to practice something.
I found that kids being fully immersed in something is also age-related. It’s not just that they have more time than an adult with a job, they also have more energy in general and typically better focus. Plus they’re able to practice things for hours at a time without getting backpain etc.
Age-related but importantly not to do with their brains as that’s what everyone thinks is so important. “I physically cannot perform this task and my brain will refuse to learn it” is talk I’m specifically trying to avoid.
I’m a pretty solid mandolin player, at least for my nearly exactly two years of experience, and that comes from the fact that I lost my job nearly exactly two years ago, three days after buying my first mandolin.
Being less able to do it never meant that you’re unable to do it, it’s just harder.
yess, it can be quite a challenge to overcome things like expectations & perfectionist tendencies and embrace play & experimentation, as well as extend compassion to ourselves as tired little creatures trying to get by in a tough world. i still have struggles with that but am very much about giving things a try just because they seem interesting, and not putting any expectations other than “might be fun” on it. it’s ok to just have a chill time & enjoy the journey! ofc it’s also ok to have more ambitious/professional goals but i feel like it doesn’t get said enough that it’s actually fine to be a hobbyist and even to be bad at hobbies (as long as safety is in order anyway).