Como ser ruim em coisas novas transforma sua vida | Marcela Bohn | TEDxErechim

Quick Overview

Marcela Bohn demonstrates that embracing imperfection and allowing oneself to be "bad at new things"—represented by her personal story of falling while learning to roller-skate—is crucial for psychological flexibility, personal growth, and discovering new strengths, rather than striving for unattainable perfection.

Key Points: The main takeaway is that embracing being 'bad at new things' cultivates psychological flexibility, which transforms life. The speaker shares a personal anecdote about falling while roller-skating in public, which initially caused intense fear of judgment and feeling incompetent. Psychological flexibility involves accepting discomfort, risk, and the possibility of failure when exploring new activities or experiences. The speaker credits her father for teaching her that life is sweet precisely because of the capacity to fall, get up, and continue moving forward, even when feeling awkward or imperfect. This willingness to be imperfect and embrace the unknown is presented as the courage needed to grow beyond pre-set rules and discover new aspects of oneself. The speaker concludes by dedicating the talk to her father, who exemplified living life fully present and embracing new experiences, even if imperfectly executed.

Context: Marcela Bohn delivers a TEDx ERECHIM talk centered on the concept of psychological flexibility, arguing that societal pressure to perform perfectly prevents individuals from engaging in new activities and achieving growth. She uses a personal story involving a public fall while roller-skating to illustrate the fear of judgment and incompetence that often stifles experimentation, contrasting this with the life lessons learned from her father about embracing risk and imperfection.

Detailed Analysis

Marcela Bohn argues that the constant pursuit of performance and productivity, driven by a culture that demands perfection, leads people to avoid new challenges out of fear of failure or criticism. She recounts a specific incident where she fell while roller-skating in a shopping mall, experiencing deep feelings of embarrassment and incompetence, which she attributes to this societal pressure. She contrasts this internal struggle with the wisdom imparted by her father, who loved people who embraced new experiences, even if they weren't good at them initially. Her father taught her that the falls and the awkwardness are necessary parts of life. The core message is that psychological flexibility requires the courage to embrace the discomfort of uncertainty and risk, allowing one to try new things (like dancing or roller-skating) without needing guarantees of success or perfection. She illustrates this with a slide showing a person teetering on a tightrope, symbolizing the balance required, and later, a slide showing her father, emphasizing that his example taught her to celebrate the process of trying rather than just the outcome. Ultimately, being willing to be 'bad' at something new—to fall and get back up—is what allows for genuine growth, vitality, and connection with life.