Can we thrive with mediocrity in our canoe lives?

"I wish I had done less canoeing, and not taken it so seriously" said no one ever.

ppine said:

I am not talking about competition with other people. Become a competent paddler because then you can be safe. Then you can aspire to improve. You can teach other people. You can lead trips. You can enjoy a lifelong pursuit. It has nothing to do with perfection.

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Were you replying to my comment about competition? I included the last part about just wanting to be good at something as an alternative to competition with others. Doesn't mean we have to be perfect, but striving for perfection isn't necessarily a bad thing if we enjoy learning.

If you are going to select for some new people to hang out with, find some with more skill than you have so you can get better.

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True. I remember the first time I followed a good whitewater boater down a tricky line in a rapid and it was like a light bulb went on for me. I never did get really good but I was always learning something new from that crowd.

What does “mediocrity in our canoe lives” look like? Alternatively what does perfection in our canoe lives look like? I mean if perfection is an unblemished canoe haul, then I think there might be a little OCD going on, which is no perfection at all.

Does being mediocre mean incompetence? I don’t think so. I think you can be both competent at something and mediocre (average) at it too.

I am probably average at most things I do, but I am also competent at most things I do. I think both are true for most of us. Many people like to say the seek perfection, or are better than mediocre at things that are important to them, like a career. The reality is most people are just mediocre at these things. Not everyone can be above average, half the people who do something must be below average (mediocre) by definition. Very few people are truly exceptional at anything. That is kind of what makes being exceptional at something so exceptional.

Anyway, I just like to enjoy myself, and usually that means I am competent in something or i am in the process of becoming competent at that something. Which also means I am probably only mediocre or maybe less, but I don’t care because I am too busy enjoying myself.