Is there anything you’ve always wanted to learn? Maybe a language? A musical instrument? Or how to build a website?
One of the things that holds most of us back is the idea that the thing we want to learn is too big – when you’re just starting out, it can seem overwhelming.
You’re probably familiar with the old joke about how to eat an elephant … the answer is ‘one bite at a time’. I think we all know this, but it can be something that’s difficult to apply in real life. Taking that one bite – especially the first one – seems a bit pointless. It doesn’t feel like it’s going to make any difference, so we don’t bother.
But what if you found ten minutes a day to just start? Watch the first couple of videos of that Udemy course you signed up for. Read the first five pages of that history of the First World War. Learn one chord on the guitar.
Ten minutes a day is about an hour a week, or 50 hours a year. Let’s be realistic – at that rate, you’re not likely to become world class anytime soon … but you will definitely improve. And as you build momentum, double your rate of improvement by turning those 10 minutes into 20.
Pick your elephant. And find ten minutes to take your first bite.
