The Joy of Trying New Things: Life Lessons at Nearly 60

I’ve been thinking a lot about failure lately. Or, more accurately, why I no longer believe it’s really a thing.

That probably sounds like a strange statement, particularly coming from someone who has tried so many different things over the years without necessarily achieving what most people would consider great success.

But hear me out.

Over the past fifteen years or so, I’ve spent a lot of time working on myself, and it all began during one of the most difficult periods of my life.

When my mum passed away, I found myself in a very depleted place. I felt as though everything had been stripped away from me. I had no confidence in myself and very little confidence in the world around me.

It was an incredibly difficult place to be, and it took a lot of therapy and hard work to begin finding my way out of it.

Even after I started to feel better, I continued working on myself, and I still do today.

It hasn’t been a quick transformation or a straight road. There have been plenty of challenges, lessons and moments when I’ve had to rethink the way I see myself and the world.

But when I look back at the person I was then and the person I am now, I can see just how much has changed.

And that is why I will never believe it’s too late to change your life.

If I could go from feeling as though I’d lost all confidence in myself to being someone who genuinely enjoys taking on new challenges, then I know how much is possible.

One of the greatest things to come out of those years of working on myself is that I’ve completely changed the way I look at failure.

I simply don’t believe that trying something and not getting the result you hoped for means you’ve failed.

In fact, I think quite the opposite.

Everything I’ve Done Has Led Me Here

If you’ve been following along here for a while, you’ll know that I’m someone who loves having a project on the go.

Over the years Tony and I have completely renovated our home inside and have now started on the outside, I’ve started this blog, written two cookbooks, worked on growing an Instagram account, explored YouTube and, most recently, ventured into the world of TikTok.

Then there’s our newest adventure, The Joyful Celebration Studio, a business I’ve started with my daughter Emily, creating beautiful celebration boxes to help people entertain at home with a little less stress.

And those are just the things you know about!

There have been plenty of other ideas, projects and adventures along the way.

Have any of them been overnight successes?

Absolutely not!

Some have grown slowly, some have changed direction, and others haven’t turned out quite the way I imagined.

But here’s the thing.

Not one of those experiences has been wasted.

Everything I’ve tried has taught me something.

I’ve learnt about websites, photography, writing, marketing, social media, technology, running a business and a hundred other things I never imagined I’d need to know.

I’ve also learnt a great deal about myself.

I’ve discovered what I enjoy, what I’m good at, what I need to work harder at and, perhaps most importantly, what I’m capable of figuring out when I put my mind to it.

Even the things that didn’t work out have helped me make better decisions about what to do next.

When I look back now, I can see how one experience led to another, and how all those little pieces of knowledge have come together to bring me to where I am today.

How could I possibly call any of that failure?

Finding Your Own Way Isn’t Always Easy

One thing I’ve come to understand as I’ve grown older is just how difficult it can be to find your own way in life.

We all have people who influence the choices we make.

Our partners, children, parents, friends and the people we care about all play a part in the decisions we make, whether we realise it or not.

And I don’t think that’s necessarily a bad thing.

When you love people and share your life with them, of course their needs, opinions and feelings are going to matter.

That’s part of being in a family and caring about the people around you.

There have certainly been times in my own life when the needs of others have quite rightly taken priority over something I might have wanted to do.

But I think there’s an important distinction between making a decision because it feels right for you and your family, and making one because you’re afraid.

Afraid of what someone might think.

Afraid you won’t be good enough.

Afraid you’ll look silly.

Or afraid that you’ll put yourself out there and things simply won’t work out.

I don’t want fear to be the reason I miss out on discovering something wonderful.

Now, before you think I’ve somehow become completely fearless, let me assure you that’s definitely not the case!

I have absolutely no interest in jumping out of an aeroplane, throwing myself off a bridge attached to a piece of elastic or doing anything else that involves voluntarily falling from a great height.

Apart from flying in an aeroplane when I need to get somewhere, I am very happy keeping both feet firmly on the ground, thank you very much!

And I have no intention of changing that.

But I think there’s a difference between being afraid of something because it genuinely doesn’t appeal to you and allowing fear to stop you from doing something you would actually love to try.

It’s that second kind of fear I’ve worked hard to overcome.

I don’t need to be fearless in every area of my life.

I just don’t want fear making my decisions for me.

You Don’t Have to Know What You’re Doing to Get Started

This is probably one of the things I love most about the person I’ve become.

I’m perfectly happy to admit when I know absolutely nothing about something.

And trust me, that happens quite regularly!

When I started blogging, there was so much I didn’t know. The same was true when I began learning about taking photos for my cookbooks, social media, digital products and now running an online business.

Every new platform seems to come with a whole new language, a new set of rules and approximately a thousand things to learn.

But instead of thinking, I don’t know how to do that, so I can’t, I’ve learnt to ask myself, Well, how do I learn?

And then I get started.

I read, watch tutorials, ask questions, make mistakes, try again and slowly work things out.

Eventually I know enough to take the next step.

And then, inevitably, I discover something else I don’t know!

I think one of the most freeing things you can do is accept that you don’t have to be an expert before you begin.

You just have to be willing to learn.

Of course, some things take longer than others, and there are certainly days when technology makes me question my life choices!

But I genuinely enjoy the challenge.

There’s something incredibly satisfying about figuring out something that seemed completely beyond you just a few weeks earlier.

Please Don’t Let Your Age Stop You

I’m approaching 60 now, and one of the things I’m most grateful for is that I haven’t lost my curiosity.

In fact, I think I’m probably more willing to try new things now than I was when I was younger.

And when I think about where I was fifteen years ago, that feels particularly significant.

There was a time when I had so little confidence in myself that I couldn’t have imagined feeling the way I do today.

That’s why I feel so strongly about not allowing age to become another reason to hold ourselves back.

I love that I’m prepared to have a go at things that some people my age might not even consider.

Not because I think everyone should be doing what I’m doing, but because I don’t believe our age should determine what we’re capable of.

Who decided that there’s an age when we’re supposed to stop learning, creating or trying something completely new?

I certainly didn’t get that memo!

There are actually some wonderful advantages to being at this stage of life.

For me, there are fewer demands on my time than there were when I was raising a family and working full-time. We also have a little more financial security, which means I can take a chance on something like our celebration box business without the same pressures I might have faced twenty years ago.

I know that’s not everyone’s situation, and I’m very grateful for the opportunities it gives me.

But I also think that trying something new doesn’t always have to involve money or starting a business.

It might be taking up painting, learning a language, joining a group, travelling somewhere new or finally making time for something you’ve always wanted to do.

The important thing is not to decide you’re too old before you’ve even tried.

Because you’re not.

And if you’re feeling as though you’ve lost your way, or that the person you once were has somehow disappeared, please don’t assume that’s how the rest of your life has to look.

I know from experience that things can change.

It may take time, support and a great deal of work, but there can be a whole new chapter waiting for you.

Sometimes I See That Same Courage in My Daughter

I like to think I’ve passed a little of this attitude on to Emily.

Although, to be fair, I think she’s actually much better at it than I am!

After all, she did set off travelling in a van by herself.

That’s a pretty good example of being willing to step outside your comfort zone!

Watching her make brave decisions and find her own way has been one of the lovely parts of being her mum.

There are things we get right, things we have to rethink and plenty of moments when we’re figuring things out.

Will our new business venture become everything we hope it will?

I genuinely don’t know.

Of course, I hope it does. We’ve put an enormous amount of time, thought and love into creating something we’re really proud of.

But even if it takes longer than we expect, or ends up looking different from what we originally imagined, I know we’ll have gained so much from the experience.

And for me, that’s already something worth celebrating.

What About Those Days When You’re Just Too Tired?

Now, I don’t want to pretend that approaching 60 comes without a few challenges.

Because the tiredness is real!

There are definitely days when the idea of curling up on the couch with a cup of tea is far more appealing than learning another new piece of technology or tackling the next thing on my to-do list.

And I think it’s important to acknowledge that.

We don’t have unlimited energy, and there’s nothing wrong with slowing down or deciding that something simply isn’t worth the effort.

But I’ve noticed something interesting about myself.

When I start working on something I genuinely love, my energy often seems to rise to meet the challenge.

I become excited about the possibilities.

I start having ideas, making plans and imagining what something could become.

Before I know it, I’m completely absorbed in what I’m doing.

Sometimes I think we assume we’re too tired to try something new when what we’re actually missing is something that makes us feel inspired.

That’s not to say a new project is the answer to every tired day. Sometimes rest really is exactly what we need.

But there’s a wonderful kind of energy that comes from doing something that lights you up.

And I don’t ever want to lose that feeling.

So, What If It Doesn’t Work Out?

This is the question I think we need to ask ourselves a little differently.

Instead of asking, What if I try and fail?

What if we asked:

What might I learn?

Who might I meet?

What opportunities might come from it?

What might I discover about myself?

Because when I look back over the last fifteen years or so, I can honestly say that the things I’ve tried have given me far more than any measure of success could tell you.

They’ve given me knowledge, confidence, friendships, opportunities and experiences.

They’ve helped me grow into someone who is far less concerned about what other people think and much more interested in living a life that feels right for me.

And perhaps most importantly, they’ve taught me that I can trust myself to figure things out.

That doesn’t mean everything will work out beautifully.

Sometimes it won’t.

Sometimes you’ll change your mind, take a different direction or realise that something you thought you’d love really isn’t for you.

There may even be disappointments along the way.

But I no longer see those experiences as failures.

They’re part of learning, growing and discovering who we are.

And none of that is wasted.

What Is It You’ve Always Wanted to Do?

So here’s what I’d love you to think about today.

Is there something you’ve been putting off?

Something you’ve always wanted to try but keep telling yourself you’re too old, too tired, too busy or simply not good enough?

Maybe it’s something small, or perhaps it’s a dream you’ve been quietly carrying around for years.

What’s really stopping you?

If it’s fear, I hope you’ll consider giving yourself permission to have a go.

You don’t have to know everything.

You don’t have to get it right the first time.

And you certainly don’t have to turn it into something successful by anyone else’s standards.

You just have to start.

I know what it’s like to feel as though you’ve lost yourself, and I also know how wonderful it can be to gradually find your way back to a life that feels exciting and full of possibilities.

If there’s one thing those difficult years taught me, it’s that we are capable of changing and growing in ways we might never have imagined.

And it doesn’t matter whether you’re 30, 50, 60 or 80.

It’s not too late.

As I head towards 60, there are still so many things I want to learn, places I want to see, ideas I want to explore and experiences I want to have.

I have absolutely no idea where some of them might lead.

But that’s half the fun, isn’t it?

I no longer measure my life by the things that have or haven’t succeeded. I measure it by how much I’ve grown, what I’ve learnt and the joy I’ve found along the way.

And with that way of looking at life, I really don’t think failure is a thing at all.

Although, just to be clear, none of those future adventures will involve jumping out of a perfectly good aeroplane!

I think one of the loveliest things about getting older is discovering that there’s still so much to learn and explore. I wrote more about this in my article, Curiosity in Retirement, where I share how staying curious can open the door to new experiences, unexpected opportunities and a more fulfilling life.