It’s really interesting how we shy away from some “hard” things, even though there is literally nothing at stake that could prevent us from doing them. Nothing life-threatening, no (or minimal) risk of physical or psychological damage, no social exclusion, no irreversable decisions about the future to make. Why can’t we just try/do it – what are we so afraid of?

Many people (especially those in a lucky environment) can just try to draw realistically (which is actually not that hard, given a good teacher/instruction), study a “hard” topic in philosophy, get good at playing a “hard” song on an instrument or even learn how to prove mathematical statements or how to model and analyze complex systems. We can just try, there is nothing at stake except our time and energy.

When something is really interesting to me, I try not to stop myself from pursuing it just because it is considered “hard”. I have many mental issues (executive dysfunction, bad memory, etc.) but I am also stubborn and curious enough to try anything, again and again if I have to, which I never regretted. It doesn’t hurt and it can be so much fun with a humble and relaxed attitude and especially if I don’t try to compare myself to others, which might be one of the main things that is holding most of us back.