Gaining Higher Ground When on a Learning Plateau
There are times when it is hard to see progress, whether in dog training, a sport, or life in general.
I am sure that I am not the only one who expects to be constantly achieving goals, making progress on projects, and getting better at skills with practice.
Life does not always work that way. There have been, are, and will be times when I am not moving forward or losing progress; I am on a flat plateau.
For me, I want to struggle up the ridge to the next mountaintop by striving for the next goal, achievement, or victory. If I cannot do that, doubt and defeat discourages me.
So, how do I gain higher ground when on a learning plateau?
Pause
To start, I pause and remember what is already accomplished. Being on a plateau means I have already achieved higher ground than where I started. When I reflectively pause, I find myself being more grateful and thanking God for what He has helped me accomplish. I trust that I will get even higher with a breakthrough.
Reevaluate Expectations
Do not have unrealistic expectations. Do not expect your journey to follow someone else’s journey. In dog training, I do not expect one dog to be like another and become amazing or even perfect through easy, effortless training. In sports, I do not (or should not; this is an expectation I must change) expect my athleticism and skill to increase even as fast as other athletes. Expectations usually form from impressions of others. If so-and-so could do such-and-such feat in that amount of time, couldn’t I also do so as well? In reality, different people have different aptitudes, strengths, and weaknesses. I sometimes wonder why I cannot do certain skills or achieve certain goals when someone else can, yet I forget that comparing myself to others is unnecessary and ridiculous. God does not compare; so I do not need to either.
Plan
Planning might include a change of plans. After reevaluating expectations, I plan or reform plans. I might need to lower or raise my expectations for some goals. For instance, extending a goal’s deadline can prevent the frustration of not completing it on time. I also plan out an attainable pathway to success. Even if the goal is never reached or reached much later, I will have at least attained steps progressing there.
Be content
I do not need to stress, worry, or pressure myself. Being content where I am allows me to enjoy the plateau. As with pausing, gratitude is important. Sometimes I find myself not being content because I have not realized I am content. Other times the fear of forever staying on a plateau prevents any lasting contentment. Yet, even plateaus have great and worthwhile views (see photo above)!
Epilogue: Perhaps it is odd to have an epilogue at the ending of a short post. But, I must mention that I wrote most of the above while on a “mental plateau” in a sport. At the time of posting, I reached a “mountaintop” but still posted this because there will be more plateaus in the future.