The Lost Art of Trying Things Badly

Kids are terrible at almost everything and it’s kind of magical.

They wobble on bikes, miss the ball, draw people with seven fingers, sing off key, and run like their limbs are still negotiating with gravity. And yet… they try. Repeatedly. Publicly. Without shame.

Somewhere along the way, we lost that.

As adults, we’ve quietly decided that if we’re not instantly good at something, it’s probably “not for us.” We avoid the dance class because we might look awkward. We don’t start the gym because we’re “out of shape.” We don’t write, paint, swim, or learn a new sport because we’re afraid of being bad at it.

Perfectionism didn’t just raise the bar, it locked the door.

“I’ll start next week”

Most people don’t say never. They say later.

“I’ll start next month.” “After things calm down.” “Next year, for sure.”

But next year is a comfortable illusion. It asks nothing of us today. It keeps our identity safe, our ego intact, and our discomfort postponed.

The truth is simple and slightly uncomfortable: there is no perfect time to start. There is only now…messy, imperfect, slightly inconvenient now.

And that’s exactly where everything meaningful begins.

Why are we so afraid to be bad?

Somewhere between childhood and adulthood, trying became risky. We attached our worth to outcomes instead of effort. Being bad stopped being a phase and started feeling like a verdict.

Social media didn’t help. We now mostly see the polished end result. The strong bodies, the “overnight success,” the effortless creatives. What we don’t see are the hundreds of awkward attempts that came before.

This is where Kaizen, the idea of 1% improvement, matters. Nothing grows in leaps. It grows in quiet, often invisible increments. The goal isn’t mastery overnight. The goal is motion.

Try. Move. Do.

That’s it.

The point isn’t the goal, it’s the journey.

Movement isn’t just about fitness. Creativity isn’t just about output. Hobbies aren’t just about productivity.

They’re about feeling alive.

They reconnect your body to your mind. They remind you that you’re allowed to explore, to be curious, to be clumsy. The joy doesn’t come from being great, it comes from participating.

Life isn’t something to perfect before you live it. It’s something you experience by showing up, again and again, imperfectly.

Start badly. Start now.

You don’t need a full plan. You don’t need new gear. You don’t need confidence.

You need one small action today.

That’s why oNex exists. Not to make you perfect, but to help you start. To move, to try, to reconnect with your body, and to build momentum alongside others doing the same. To feel free in your movement, clear in your mind, and supported in the journey.

The lost art isn’t talent. It’s permission.

So start badly. Start now.