[Stuey]

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I can't tie knots, even if someone shows me how to. My mind simply can't do it.

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First let me say I don't think there is anything wrong with you at all. But these are just ideas I want to add to the discussion.

Can you juggle 3 or 4 objects?

Most people will say no to this question but here is a secret. Anyone can juggle up to 4 balls if they want to learn how. The trick is it is a different method of learning than we normally use.

You are a smart guy so you probably are using the gather information and use it the way they tell you method and are assuming you should get instant success. There is another way to learn and it is fun once you see it work.

Go gather information on juggling and learn how it is done. Then try and do it. You won't be able to do it I bet. Most people just quit at this point. The trick is to keep trying you are going to feel like you are not getting better but hang in there.

It could only take an hour or it could take a month maybe more. But then one day you will suddenly juggle! Now the crazy part is you won't know why or how you are able to do it now. What happens is you brain learns how to do it kind of unconsciously. It is like riding a bike once you learn you can't forget.

You know those pictures you can only see if you focus your eyes the right way. That is the same thing sometimes you just need time and you have to relax part of your brain so the other parts that we normally don't even know are there can take over and figure stuff out for us. But that part of the brain never tells the other part the trick. So you have to relax and turn off the main part to let it kick in.

I'm pretty sure none of this made sense to anyone but me but I have had this happen in several situations. It is kind of like finding the zone in sports. You don't know what it is like till you get there. And then you like it so much you want to stay. But you when you try to stay or go there you get kicked out immediately and it seems impossible to ever reach that feeling again. You have to let it come to you.

Yah I'm mostly crazy huh? Here is an example.

Once when I was playing hockey when I was around 18 I got a breakaway! I don't really know why but I shot the puck from outside the blue line. Not a slap shot either just a quick release on the ice wrist shot. It was like a hard pass really. I scored! The goalie was not standing in the middle of his net and half the goal was open.

I did not think before I shot, something in my brain overrode my reasoning and I shot before I could think how dumb it was. I was on a clear-cut breakaway I could have skated right in. And I was more startled than some of the other players when I did it as it really felt like I didn't have a choice and something other than my brain made me shoot. It was an important game and even my teammates said I was an idiot as if I would not have scored they would have killed me for shooting from there.

I have also found learning to swim to be the same way. You feel like you are drowning for weeks as you try to learn to swim. Then one day you stop thinking about what each part of your body needs to be doing and relax and dam if your body does not take over you swim like a fish. It is Zen like and the best feeling ever when it kicks in at times when you don't expect it.

Being smart allows you to force lots of learning into your brain as you have easier access to it than most people. But when one path is so easy to use most people don't go looking for an alternative route. And there are an infinite number of ways for us to learn, grow, and experience things imo. Try the harder ones and when you succeed the results are startling and very rewarding.

I'm betting tl;dr oh well probably for the best I'm already considered a freak around here anyways. [img]/images/graemlins/blush.gif[/img] [img]/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img]