We learn something for work. We learn something because we need to fix something. Sometimes we have to learn how to use a new phone because the old one finally gave up. You got a new TV and suddenly there is this new monster called a digital remote sitting in your hand. There always seems to be a reason why we need to learn something new.

But what about learning something new, just because you want to?

I’ve been busy trying to learn how websites are built and how to make information available to regular people. It’s fun yes, and definitely new to me.

Patty recently decided she wants to learn to play the piano/keyboard. Not because she plans to perform somewhere. Not because she’s starting a new career. And certainly not because anyone told her she should. She just thinks it would be fun.

So we’re looking at keyboards, talking about lessons, figuring out what all those buttons do, and discovering that there is a whole world there neither of us knows much about.

And that’s the point.

You Don’t Have to Become an Expert

I’ve been playing around with guitars for years.

Notice we said playing around with guitars, not preparing for Carnegie Hall.

There’s always another chord to learn. Another song to try. Another little discovery that makes yesterday’s impossible thing suddenly seem pretty easy. Sometimes you get better. Sometimes you don’t. Sometimes you spend twenty minutes trying to figure something out, finally get it—and think:

Well, I’ll be darned. I can do that. And that’s a pretty good feeling.

Something Everybody Should Know Is — Learning Doesn’t Have an Age Limit

Somewhere along the way, many of us seem to get the idea that learning belongs mostly to young people. School. College. Careers. Raising families.

Then one day you’re older and supposedly you’re the person who already knows things. Nonsense.

There is an enormous world full of things we don’t know. Technology. Music. Cooking. Photography. Gardening. Woodworking. Painting. Travel. History. A different language. How to make sourdough bread. The list is seemingly endless.

Or how to make an HP printer quit doing something you don’t want it to do. Sorry. We couldn’t resist. That one recently became an issue around here. More on that maybe sometime later.

And Listen, You Don’t Even Have to Be ‘Good’ at It

Maybe that’s one of the advantages of learning something simply because you want to. There doesn’t have to be a test at the end. Nobody is grading you. Nobody cares whether it takes you ten minutes or ten weeks. And if you decide after a while that it isn’t nearly as much fun as you thought it would be?

Fine. Try something else. The goal wasn’t to accomplish something impressive.

The goal was to enjoy discovering something you didn’t know yesterday.

OK, Start With Something That Makes You Curious

Maybe you’ve always wondered how to play the piano. Maybe there’s a guitar sitting in a closet. Maybe you want to take better pictures with that ridiculously capable camera you’re carrying around in your pocket. Maybe you’ve always wanted to paint, grow tomatoes, make bread, learn about the stars, or finally understand what all those buttons on the remote actually do.

Pick one. Start small. And don’t worry about whether it’s practical.

Sometimes “just because I want to” is a perfectly good reason.

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Something Useful, Maybe.  Something Fun, Always.

You don’t have to master something new for learning it to be worthwhile.

Sometimes curiosity is enough.

And sometimes learning something new simply makes life a little more interesting.

And that’s reason enough for us.