How’s it going? It’s your weekly dose of Daniel, and today I want to share some insights about switching things up in your life and trying new things to stimulate personal growth – because isn’t evolution kinda the point of existence?

I mentioned a few weeks ago that I was joining a softball team – which, if you told me a year ago I would say you’re crazy. But I’ve got to tell you for some reason I’m really activated by trying new things lately! It’s a total rush and I want to share and hopefully inspire you to do the same.

rough in the diamond

This week we started our softball season and our first real practice game was also our first real game. Luckily my team, The Sally Fields, is made up of a healthy mix of seasoned players, and a bunch of newbies who have no clue what we’re doing.

This is just a ‘beer league’ – aka we’re in the lowest division possible which means it’s meant to be fun and social. That said, this was something I was initially hesitant to do, namely because the last time I hit a baseball was during a tee ball game when I was 6, and I’d never been on a sports team in my life.

I don’t know what’s come over me the past couple years, but my former self would be much more reserved and participate only in things where I knew what the hell I was doing. Something has changed, though, and I’m loving it.

I’ve always been a “figure it out as I go” kinda guy, but diving into the unknown with this sport felt more intimidating because I barely knew the rules of the game other than “hit the ball and run” and I legit felt like I didn’t know what I was doing… because I didn’t.

Upon arrival, I was given my position, Center Field Right, to which I asked my coach: “is that stage right? Or the audience’s right?” (you can take the actor off the stage…) Let me tell ya, life in the outfield made me realize a) baseball fields are way bigger than I thought and b) there’s way more running involved than I had anticipated.

I’ve got to say – the whole experience was totally f!@#ing thrilling! What an adrenaline rush to have someone use a bat to smash a large ball toward your face and learn to either catch it before it knocks your teeth out, or run to pick it up and blow out your shoulder getting it back to the infield.

We didn’t win and I’m not great (yet) but I got 2 runs in my first game (which is different than the runs I had before the game out of nervousness). Ultimately I showed myself once again that I’m capable of more than I thought and now I’m really looking forward to many more nights of fun!

in with the new

So why should we try new things? Why not just stick with what works for us?

Firstly, you never know what you’re missing out on! Had I known softball and team sports were so fun I probably would have dove in much earlier in life.

Next, there’s an energy that’s created when we’re excited or nervous, and that really only happens when we do something new. As we’ve discussed before, there’s so much power in stepping outside of your comfort zone. That energy has the potential to create an up-levelling that ripples out into other facets of your life and enriches your experience on this planet.

I remember going to The Pine, an incredible restaurant in the area (which was just named #40 on the list of Top 100 restaurants in all of Canada!) and being kind of intimidated by the idea of a restaurant with a set menu where I had to eat what was in front of me. I am by no means a picky eater, but I was a bit nervous about a menu full of things I would never order on my own – but I went all in!

I ate bison tar tar, a spicy fish stew, caviar on a tea-soaked quail egg – among  many other mind-blowing dishes. I am not exaggerating when I say this was the best dining experience of my life – and being open to trying new foods made me a “foodie” instantly. I didn’t shut up about The Pine for weeks after we went there, and now I am much more open to trying new food!

Ask Steve – he’s been pushing me to eat sunny side up eggs forever and I was always more of a fried or scrambled kinda guy. But I finally caved one night when he made steak and eggs for dinner and it was so good – “nature’s gravy” as he calls it. Now I’m mad that I was squeamish about runny eggs my whole life and missed out.

So don’t miss out on all the “runny eggs” in life, my friend!

into the unknown

Venturing into unknown territory is not a natural state for many people. It takes practice to put yourself into new situations, but it’s invaluable to constantly test your limits.

That said, my challenge to you this week is to try something new!

Pop into a fitness class you wouldn’t normally attend.
Watch a genre of movie you don’t always get into.
Try a session you’ve never tried at Vortex.
Read a new book by an author you’ve never heard of.
Eat at a new restaurant or cook a different style of cuisine
You can figure it out, but switch it up!

And the beautiful thing is, you don’t have to like it! We don’t just thrive from positive experiences that we enjoy, we grow because there is expansion in experience.

Coming from two co-founders of a new-fangled approach to self care and wellness, we understand that “new” can seem intimidating, but as everyone who has come to Vortex knows, “new” can turn into “awesome” real quick!

If you end up doing something new and different, I’d love to hear about it. Until then, enjoy your day!