I don’t think that the concept of learning something new– is a new concept. I’m sure we can all intellectually agree that learning is a good thing, right? However, I can’t say that I had ever really thought about this and what it means to me now until… just recently.
As a kid I loved school so it makes sense that as an adult I might still love school. As a kid, school came easily and I got off on excelling in academics. I didn’t care for homework or tests, but all in all I found school stimulating. Of course, studying acting in college was the highlight of my formal education. But once I graduated, I sort of thought-that’s it… school is done. My formal learning is over. Now it’s time to make a career out of all of this school and be done with it. And so, up until now, I thought this to be true and as a result I realize that I’ve spent many years bored from the lack of learning in my life… That’s not to say I didn’t take classes over the years. I did. I continued my career development by taking classes in auditioning and the business of acting, and these were wonderful, valuable classes that I needed. But something was missing. I didn’t feel that delight I once felt when I was kid diving into learning about something truly NEW!
It was a couple months ago when my very insightful and thoughtful Mother-In-Law mentioned that I would make a good wellness coach. I wasn’t even aware of what a wellness coach was until she mentioned it. But when I looked it up and did a little research it resonated with me. I love helping people get on track with their health! And, I plain old love helping people feel good about themselves. And that’s basically what a wellness coach does. My Mother-in-Law’s advice came at the right time too because I’d been feeling a little down-trodden about all of the other areas of work that I do to make a living outside of acting. I needed change because I wasn’t feeling enough day-to-day fulfillment in my work. So, I decided that I was going to learn how to become a wellness coach. This one decision led me to sign up for 3 new classes. And, with that, the start of my journey into learning NEW things began.
The learning extravaganza began a couple weekends ago when I went away to learn how to become a CrossFit trainer. I signed up for the class about a month in advance. I read all of the reading materials and reviewed it a few times too. But, as luck would have it, a few weeks beforehand, my knee started acting up. It was a sprained ACL. I looked into postponing the training to another date, but alas it was non-transferrable. So, I swallowed my pride and made the decision to go no matter what. I no longer was going to be able to look as strong and as capable as I was hoping to look at the training, but I was there to learn, and the coaches at my gym assured me that I could modify anything during the training.
Sidebar: When I was 22 and had just moved to NYC I broke my arm after I tripped down a couple stairs in my apartment building. This held great significance for me because it happened on the morning of the first Monday of my life as an adult outside of college. In my mind, I just knew that this Monday was going to be one of the most important days of my life. I was heading to “All My Children” to meet some people I knew on the show, and I felt very confidant that everything was going to go really well. But, I didn’t make it into Manhattan that day. I went to the hospital and got a cast on my arm instead. I was young and naïve and that broken arm ended up meaning so much more to me than it should have.
I felt regret and sadness from that day for many years. So most recently, when I felt this knee injury right as I was about to embark on this new journey I couldn’t help but be reminded of my broken arm. But this time I didn’t let it stop me (I guess I learned something over the years). I went to my Cross-fit trainer class with a sprained knee and though I was nervous going into it, I ended up having the time of my life. I sat captive during the lectures; I took pages of notes with glee. I learned new things. I found myself thrilled with my new knowledge and eager to share it with anyone interested in learning. When the weekend was over I went home and felt really sad because I didn’t want it to be over!
It was that wonderful weekend – the beginning of my journey into taking new classes and trying new things – when I realized that as long as I live I need to seek out new things to learn. It’s part of what makes me happy, part of what makes me tick as a human being. Right now I’ll be focusing most of my learning on fitness and health. But ask me again in 10 years and maybe I’ll be learning Russian… I certainly hope so, at least, because that would awesome.
So… what interests you? Cooking? Drawing? Writing? Business? My guess is that if you enjoyed school as a kid, chances are you’ll enjoy it as an adult. Get out there, find a class, and learn something new. You’ll feel better and who knows where it will take you…
Peace out, peeps. I have studying to do!