Hello!
It has been a long time between blog posts and I am a little late getting this one out.
Life has been good for us here on our little evolving urban homestead. I hope all has been good for you too.
I have been busy around home and in the garden – it is the height of the growing and preserving season.
However, I am ready for some new challenges and to take on some new projects.
New Year, New Challenges
Late last year I saw an Instagram post mentioning a challenge of learning one new skill a month. I am not sure if this is an adaptation of the 30-day challenges that have been going around the interwebs for several years. (I want to give credit for the challenge, but do you think I can find that account again??? If I do, I will update this post.)
Regardless, it piqued my interest.
I also did a quick Google search on monthly challenges, and it brought up a lot of interesting articles and ideas.
It revealed one of the benefits of a 30-day challenge is overcoming overwhelm. Learning a new skill or adopting a new habit is hard. It can be a test of patience and a source of frustration. However, by giving yourself only 30 days the task feels less intimidating. It is not forever, there is an end in sight. After that, you can decide to stop or continue.
Why Challenge Yourself?
Firstly, I love to challenge myself – solo overseas travel, walking the Camino in Spain, and building a massive garden from scratch. I have learned the benefits of pushing myself to find my strengths and capabilities.
I don’t want to stop there. I want to be more, do more, learn more.
Secondly, I have trouble with focus. I have a list of things I want to do and have trouble starting a new project. I am creative which means my mind can get chaotic with all the ideas and things I want to do. I get overwhelmed and distracted.
I hope by breaking things down into monthly challenges I can tame the chaos and increase my productivity.
Even though it seems like a small thing to do, challenging yourself to learn a new skill or habit can be life-changing.
A new skill or habit could lead to a new career path, a healthier lifestyle, or a direction you had never considered. Learning one new skill sounds like a small thing to do, but it could change everything.
The original poster of the challenge was an American Homesteader, so their skills and challenges were based on that lifestyle. I would like to do something similar as that lifestyle is something Dan and I enjoy, albeit on a smaller scale, on an Urban Homestead. (Stay tuned for a post about Homesteading soon.)
However, the challenge can apply to anything – think fitness, starting a new business, a new hobby, learning to cook from scratch, gardening, trade skills, lifestyle changes, or improved health.
Imagine what you could accomplish. Granted, one month is not enough to fully master a skill, however, it will give you a kickstart and help to see if it is worth pursuing.
Choosing Skills for the Challenge
I decided to mix it up this year with a combination of skills and habits. I am creative. I love making things, especially from scratch so my chosen skills will be reflective of that.
Firstly, I wrote down everything I have been interested in – for more audacious skills, I broke those down into various components to focus on to avoid overwhelm. Hopefully, by the time I get to the end of the year, all the components will fit together. Once I start posting about each month’s skills/habits things will make more sense.
To start the year, January was all about soap making. Partly because it is creative, and partly because it moves me closer to our goal of self-sufficiency.
The year has started well. soap making is a hit and it is a skill I want to hone. I want to expand my skills and collect more supplies and tools. I started with the basics, I did not want to spend money on a craft I didn’t know I would continue.
Now I have the foundation to make different types of body soaps, hair shampoo bars, hand soap, dishwashing soap bars, and laundry powder. I can then expand on recipes using plants and herbs from the garden.
Introductory Herbalism is for February, starting with making a list of our most common ailments and what I can make/do for each of those and then moving on to learning about the relevant plants.
I think March will be all about Crocheting, something I am doing sporadically but will attempt to do consistently for 30 days.
After that, I am not sure.
I am choosing a lot of “old-fashioned” skills. I have a real interest in skills that were once passed from generation to generation. For many reasons, they appeal to me. I have always thought I was born at the wrong time. Certainly, the lifestyle Dan and I are creating reflects that – a return to simple living and back to basics. It is a lifestyle that makes us happy and content.
Making it Work
To make this challenge work, I need to make time and space for each new skill or habit.
For me, that means scheduling time in my week, just like I would a major project around the house, like painting.
These new skills or habits cannot be done how I typically do something new and that’s squeezed between other things I have going on. I understand the need to dedicate time to each one so I bought a diary to schedule time in my week. I have not yet become disciplined with this, let’s just say I am a work in progress and will endeavour to improve.
Anyway, let’s see if I can keep up with this challenge. It will be good to look back at the end of the year to see what I have achieved.
I am glad to be back sharing blog posts. I hope to be more consistent this year – another habit to work on!
Until next time
Cindy