"Trying new things seems key to personal growth" by: Jessica Shepard

   Look, by no means am I a life coach, guidance counselor, or supremely interesting personality that’s claiming to have life figured out.
  So feel free to take anything and everything I say or recommend with a grain of salt.
  I mean, I took enough psychology, sociology, history, and anthropology classes in college that I think I have a pretty good framework for personal growth by learning from the mistakes of others and constantly questioning everything around me.
  Well, that and the fact that my mom has always encouraged all of her children to investigate the truth of issues or situations as well as being introspective.
  However, the hard part about that is finding out not everyone else was raised in a similar manner!
  But, overall, I consider myself a perpetual “work in progress” sort of person who rejects all linear time constraints.
  I also fancy sharing any insights that I come across with my family and closest friends.
  Those sharing moments are motivated by wanting to find similar connections so that others don’t think they’re alone in their experiences and looking for a chance to compare viewpoints.
  I’ve always been an observant person and I feel like I’ve avoided a lot of potential personal pitfalls by taking notes when others go through tough situations.
  However, there comes a time when I don’t have that stored information available to draw upon, so I’m either forced to have this new experience on my own or to avoid it like the plague.
  Most of the time, I limit new possibilities based on how much available energy I have to dedicate to the task at hand.
  I’ve found that some instances require more effort and therefore energy than others – like trying new food versus picking up a new hobby.
  Also, some of those new experiences might be more expensive in the long run and I’m not about putting myself in any financial binds if I can help it.
  Sure, that seems like I’m limiting my interactions with the world around me, but I like to think of it as curating my experiences.
  Plus, just because I veto it at the moment, doesn’t mean I’m not going to limit the possibility of doing it later when I have the space to accommodate it fully.
  And sometimes, I retry something new to see if my previous outcome or feelings have changed on the subject at hand.
  When something still doesn’t sit well with me, I don’t indulge or explore it again for a while – if at all.
  A prime example of this for me is sushi; I’ve tried it several times in varying formats to see if it’s something I can add to my personal menu and so far the result is always the same – I’m not a fan and can’t see myself eating it again anytime soon.
  Again, it just seems easier to do that with food than anything else!
  But, overall, I fully advocate testing one’s own personal boundaries and trying new things if you’ve got the available bandwidth to dedicate to the experience.
  After all, you could gain new personal insights, talents, skills, or a unique perspective.
  Just remember that even if it’s a flop, it could inspire you to try something else that’s semi-adjacent to the initial interaction and I think that’s a great contributor for personal growth.