Adult Beginner: The Art of Starting Something New

Starting something new often includes feelings of frustration, disappointment, and self-criticism. Learning how to learn well is key.

I was 12 years old the first time I swam across a lake.

Near the beginning of the year, I decided to swim 2.4 miles across a 60° F lake in northern Minnesota at the end of June. It’d be a Misogi—a year defining event. A major accomplishment to mark 2024 well-lived.

Swimming is not something I did growing up except for a few classes at the YMCA and summer camp. I know how to swim. I don’t know how to swim well.

Over the past month I’ve been practicing. That’s the best way to describe what I do today. I’m learning. I’m in the pool multiple times a week. My endurance is low and I’m scratching the surface on good form. Intuitively I know there’s a rhythm to achieve. A sequence of stroke-kick-breathe which when combined produce a kind of effortless flow.

Learning how to swim as an adult is good. Starting anything new—whether it’s swimming, coding, writing, or selling—is not pretty in the beginning. It’s rough, difficult, slow, and error prone. Progress can feel insignificant. Self-criticism is easy.

To start anything new requires having healthy expectations. You’re going to make mistakes and it’s not going to go smoothly. My first expectation is that I swim five days a week. Full points for getting in the pool and doing my best to get laps in.