Easy or New?

I talk funny. Especially when it comes to learning, I use words that sound really strange to people who do not know me yet. For example, I do my best not to use the words hard and difficult: When I say something is difficult, I feel a little overwhelmed. I don’t feel motivated to do the thing. The task is, on some level, new. I haven’t done it enough times to make it feel easy. Maybe sometimes it feels easy, but I have not learned it so that it feels easy to do even when I’m tired, hungry or otherwise under extra stress. 

When I call a task new instead of hard or challenging, my mind-body system gets ready for something exciting. I have an open-minded curiosity about how I will accomplish it. I am interested in how it might feel easier after I have done so and curious about what I might learn along the way. ​​​​​​​

Rather than calling things difficult or hard, I am committed to learning that every task and every activity is either easy or new. I train students to do the same. 

​​​​​​​If something is easy, I have learned it or mastered it. I may have done it or similar things many times before. 

If it's new, I am still learning it. I might not yet feel like I have got it down. There is more learning to be done by rehearsing the task until it becomes easy.

NEW ↜------------------------------------------------------↝ EASY

When I encourage myself with energizing words like easy and new, I have more energy and clearer awareness of how to use my energy to reach my goals. Living life on a spectrum of learning makes it possible for me to be curious about my mistakes as I make them. 
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What feels new to you in life right now? What feels easy?

Send me an email to let me know.