Several years ago I used to take roller skating lessons. I learned a few things that apply a little bit to life.
You’re going to fall. Even professionals who have done this for years fall sometimes, but that doesn’t mean you don’t get back up and keep going.
It hurts to fall, even if you catch yourself correctly as you go down. But if you let that keep you from trying again, you’ll never feel how freeing it is to glide along.
Know how and when to stop. Sometimes you get so caught up in going that you can’t stop yourself when things get a little out of your control. Learn how to anticipate that and adjust for it.
Listen to and watch people who know what they’re doing. They can help you better do what you’re doing.
Be mindful of those around you. Not everyone is at your skill level. Some are much more balanced, some are much slower. Just be sure that you travel alongside each other and not into each other. Be a help and not a hindrance.
It’s okay to work hard and become the one doing all the cool stuff, and it’s okay to slow yourself down for someone who’s learning.
Sometimes you have to do unusual things to make progress. When you want to go forward while walking, you just step forward with your foot. When want to go forward on skates, you have to distribute your weight differently and push your foot back and to the side a little, otherwise you’ll just slide your feet back and forth in place without getting anywhere quickly.
Sometimes you need to go back to the basics. There are times when you can forget how to do things properly, or you just get a little rusty or overwhelmed. In these cases, you need to practice the little things you first learned so you can go forward smoothly again.
Sometimes something will come along and unexpectedly check your balance, but you might not fall every time. Whether it’s finding an odd spot on the floor, someone falling near you, someone zooming by you, or suddenly wondering about your own ability, sometimes you’ll wobble and be unsteady. But you’ll get the hang of things and you’ll fall less and less whenever it happens.