A moment for mediocrity…

Don’t get me wrong, I love to excel. In fact I love the feeling of doing really well so much that sometimes, I can find myself avoiding starting something new if I don’t think I’ll be able to get good at it.

Can you relate?

We are often reminded to aim high, strive for excellence, refine our craft, and I don’t disagree with this advice at all; however I’d like to make the case for doing something to an average standard.

Let me give you an example:

I started dancing when I was about 4, so as you can imagine by the time I reached my teens I was pretty good. I won medals, starred in shows (I’m talking local, not like West End, but still). I had talent  and experience, and my teachers told me that there were some amazing opportunities ahead of me if I kept working hard and improving, it’s a competitive industry after all. 

Spoiler alert, I chose not to take that path. In fact, I stopped dancing altogether. I had unknowingly internalised the idea that there was no point in continuing if I wasn’t trying to be the best.

Over the years I realised that I missed it. But how could I go back to it when I was so out of practice? What would be the point of starting again now anyway?

Last year I finally started dancing again. Not to get good, not to keep fit. Just because I like how it feels. It took a lot for me to sign up and show up for that first class after such a long break but what got me through the door was aiming to be average. I wanted to go into that room and do an OK job. That thought process got me started, and the result is that I have rekindled my love of an old hobby that brings me joy. Does it keep me fit? Yeah! Will I improve over time? Probably! But the point is that’s not why I do it, and because there is no requirement other than to be average, it’s so much easier to enjoy myself. And because I enjoy myself, I keep going.

Now look, if you’re a pharmacist or an aeroplane engineer or one of those people that checks rollercoasters are safe before kids get on, then I am not suggesting that you just phone it in tomorrow at work.

All I’m saying is that there is a time to shine and there is a time to be average. There is a time to aim high and prioritise progress, but there are plenty of things we don’t NEED to be the best, or even very good at. So if you need a permission slip to be average at something, here's yours.

What can you start or go back to purely because you enjoy it?