The Importance of Being Bad at Something Before You Get Good

Not being good at something doesn’t mean you’re not learning. The things you respect in coding, design, communication and so on, were once lacklacks. The first few days of learning are always uncomfortable because you’re in the learning zone with uncertainty, mistakes, slow progress. This is not an endpoint, though; it’s a stepping stone toward getting better.

This is the stage that most people skip because they want to feel good right away. They see other’s at an advanced level and feel that they are not. This way of thinking can make them reluctant to go any further. However, as far as getting good at something goes there is no easy way. First you have to experience the “bad” phase, when you feel like there isn’t a smooth way to do anything.

This, in fact, is the time when the most significant learning takes place. You have to be very clever when you’re not good at something, you have to ask questions, think hard, and learn the basics. Errors are turned into lessons and confusion is transformed into clarity with the passing of time. Every go you make is a small improvement which makes you more skilful in the long run.

Good doesn’t happen once; good happens many times as a series of failures, corrections, and persistence. Those who are successful are those who don’t want to be bad, they are those who want to be bad and carry on anyway. They realize that all experts have been beginners at one time, who did not quit when it was difficult.

Don’t be scared of being bad, so be good. That’s where the real growth starts, and real skill is developed.