{"id":685,"date":"2025-05-30T09:53:49","date_gmt":"2025-05-30T08:53:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/irismag.uk\/?p=685"},"modified":"2025-06-04T11:43:16","modified_gmt":"2025-06-04T10:43:16","slug":"learning-to-suck-why-being-bad-at-something-is-the-first-step-to-mastery","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/jusmedia.co.uk\/irismag\/2025\/05\/30\/learning-to-suck-why-being-bad-at-something-is-the-first-step-to-mastery\/","title":{"rendered":"Learning to Suck: Why Being Bad at Something is the First Step to Mastery"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Ever felt frustrated by how awful you are at something new? Turns out, that’s the best place to start. Guest writer Thea Burgess dives into the reasons why being bad at something isn’t just okay – it’s essential.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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“Anything worth doing is worth doing badly at first.\u201d<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

– G.K. Chesterton<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I would consider my first attempt at painting to have been a true insult to artists all around the globe. Damien Hirst let out a sigh, as Banksy sat his spray paint down to hold his head in his hands. Rembrandt turned in his grave. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

So what did I do? I quit. I swiftly put the paintbrush down, and I haven’t revisited painting in years. Sound familiar? Of course it does. We\u2019ve all been there – you try something new, you’re immediately bad at it, and so you feel deflated and you quit. It feels easier to give up than go through the awkward, embarrassing, clunky anguish of mastering a new skill.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Why do we expect to be good at something we\u2019ve never done? And what if being terrible is actually the most important part? We all need to hear the blunt and honest truth: being bad at something is the first step to mastery.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Science of Sucking – Your Brain on Failure<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

You may think science and the arts don\u2019t often mix, but there\u2019s some unavoidable scientific evidence out there to back up why failing is a necessity. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

I couldn\u2019t talk about the psychology of learning, failing and improving without mentioning a certain someone: Carol Dweck.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Carol Dweck is an American psychologist best known for her work on the theory of growth mindset, which explores how beliefs about ability influence learning and achievement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

To truly understand Dweck’s view on the connection between your mindset and your overall success, I would highly recommend reading her book called Mindset<\/a> or watching her renowned Ted Talk<\/a>. But, to sum her ideologies up, how you think affects the outcome of your ventures. Dweck talks about the importance of having a growth mindset over a fixed one.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Having a growth mindset means believing that your abilities, intelligence, and creativity can be developed over time through effort, practice, and learning \u2014 not just something you\u2019re born with or without. This is important for artists to hear – no natural talent can outdo hard work and a bit of self-belief.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I interviewed successful Chicago-based artist Leah Gardner<\/a> about the importance of failure: \u201c I don’t think it’s possible to grow artistically without failing. My improvement as a painter is built on a stack of horrible paintings that went into the trash. If you’re never experimenting and messing up, you’re probably not growing as much as you could be.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Credit: Leah Gardner<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
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Credit: Leah Gardner<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

Need some more scientific evidence that failure is good for you? Let’s talk about neuroplasticity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to expert Kendra Cherry<\/a>, neuroplasticity is the brain’s ability to change and adapt due to experience. So, it’s really at the heart of why failure is so valuable. Failure sparks neuroplasticity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When you make a mistake or experience failure, your brain kicks into \u201cerror detection\u201d mode. It flags what went wrong and starts adjusting. Neurons involved in the failed attempt fire together, creating an opportunity to rewire and improve the next attempt. This process of trial, error, and correction is exactly how skill learning and creative mastery happen.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So what does this mean for artists and creatives? In the visual arts, failure is more than just a bump in the road \u2014 it\u2019s the process that sculpts your brain to be more agile, innovative, and expressive. Every bad sketch, failed concept, or abandoned canvas is literally reshaping your brain for the better.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Why Most People Quit – The Valley of Despair<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

It’s time to talk about the infamous \u201cValley of Despair\u201d. AKA the \u201cSuck Zone\u201d, or the \u201cLearning Dip\u201d. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

When we start a new skill, the motivation we gathered to begin said skill can rapidly deteriorate as we plummet towards the \u2018Valley of Despair\u2019. This valley is a fiery, awful pit filled with frustration, rage and discomfort.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s the part of the journey where:<\/p>\n\n\n\n