Let your inner explorer guide you
Growth is a beautiful process, which is natural to everything what is alive. Still, in our day to day instead of experiencing it as an inner need, we may be exposed to pressure to shape ourselves to fit new roles and fulfill other people’s expectations. We may be encouraged to push ourselves towards becoming more efficient, with longer list of skills, always goal-oriented.
Being surrounded by this kind of narrative, makes it is easy to be tempted to do things quickly. Vastness of resources whispers to do as much as we can in the shortest amount of time. Enhancing ourselves sometimes may seem like a new obligation, a chore really.
The growth-related tales seem to be omnipresent. Everybody is doing it. Everybody is sharing their progress, but rarely their failures. Observing what others do can be inspiring, but comparing our path to the paths of others, sometimes invites unnecessary overthinking and we end up comparing tulips and lilies. Both are beautiful and regal flowers, but so different from each other not only in the way they look but also in term of what they need.
Maybe it would be more useful for us to think of our self-development as of the growth of a plant? In nurturing, favorable environment all the necessary changes are happening in their own time. In the proper order. They are not effortless, but they are natural. Even if sometimes they leave a plant a bit tired, they are not beyond its ability to cope. Changes are not forced, but fueled by proper nutrients. One needs to be careful here - too much water, fertilizer or sun will not make things happen faster, will not make things better. On the contrary – in the long run, they will make the plant suffer or even die.
So whenever we are entering a new path, let’s think of ourselves as of plants and be gentle by giving ourselves enough time and space for the growth to happen, for the new skills to settle and to become a part of our tissue.
Still, it can be scary at times to reach the edges of the comfort zone.
How to deal with this uneasiness, if it occurs?
Every data scientist has a tool at hand.
We all know that the truly crucial part of every analysis is not the set of sophisticated calculations, but what comes before. Checking the environment and the basic characteristics of the data. Exploration as an act and as a need, and the thing which drives it. Curiosity.
Searching and discovering are very rewarding mental states. If we are able to awake these feelings, when we encounter something new or unexpected, they have the power to make the uneasiness go away. They give us the power to create new meaning and to understand. Of course, it is not enough to become interested in something to get rid of all unpleasant feelings, but it may be useful to realize and to remember that as humans we are a seeking species. We are in fact hardwired for curiosity. We are descendants of past adventurers and explorers.
Our great power as humans is also our spectacular ability to collaborate. We are able to survive in any climate on this planet, thanks our resourcefulness, creativity, and the fact that in the face of a challenge we work together. Actively reaching out, asking questions, and sharing the struggle, not only helps to normalize seeking out help, but most of all creates a stimulating environment in which brainstorming can lead you to create solutions and to grow in ways you may not think of on your own.
Growth is not a task or a chore. It is a natural process, which happens to us regardless of what we do. The amazing thing is, however, that we can take an active part in it and lead ourselves towards our own goals and new solutions. So, next time you encounter a challenge – let your inner explorer guide you. Do not rush, do your best to stay curious, and team up with those, who are willing to take part in the adventure.
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Written by
Anna Cwojdzinska