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As the saying goes, ‘You can’t teach an old dog new tricks’. In keeping with this, many people assume that learning new skills and hobbies is solely a young person’s game.

In truth, continuing to learn new things throughout our lives can help to keep us young and excited. Learning new hobbies can also boost our mental health, advance our career options, and keep our minds sharp into our later years. Still, there’s no denying that you face more of an uphill climb to learn a new hobby than you might have when you were younger.

This should by no means stop you from trying, but it does mean you might want to approach your new hobby with the following techniques in mind.

 # 1 – Find a Great Teacher

Whether you’re taking piano lessons or intend to learn pottery, a great teacher is key to effective learning as an adult. This is because, unlike children who can often learn things intuitively or with limited guidance, adults can benefit from the expertise of someone who knows exactly what you need to do. A teacher who has experience working with adults can help with everything from basic skill acquisition, to repetitive exercises and more advanced skills when you’re ready. Adults also often suffer from a lack of confidence that kids simply don’t have. In this respect, a teacher can be the confidence boost you need to stick to that new hobby instead of throwing up your hands and assuming you’ll never get the hang of things.

# 2 – Practise Patience

On average, a child’s brain has double the neural connections of an adult’s, and those connections are constantly remodelling/absorbing information in a way that simply doesn’t happen as we get older. This means that, even if you were able to pick up skills in a matter of hours during your younger years, you’re unlikely to sit down at a piano for the first time in your adult life and crack out Beethoven. That’s not to say you won’t get there in time, but it does mean you need to practise patience to achieve that goal. Instead of setting your sights on heady achievements early on, be gentle with yourself and build on small achievements, with the intention of working up to the bigger stuff when you’re good and ready.

# 3 – Use Methods That Work for You

Time restrictions are another reason why it can sometimes be harder to learn new things as an adult. As kids, our lives are solely dedicated to learning. We learn new things all the time and have the time to dedicate to those causes. As an adult, you’re juggling full-time work, family life, and household chores. To get around this, you must choose learning methods that work for you. These could include remote learning, learning apps, or simply lessons that run during the weekend.

It isn’t always easy to learn a new hobby in later life, but it’s well worth doing with the help of techniques like these.

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