What New Skill Should I Learn?

Ready to dive into a fun new hobby or skill but don’t know where to start? We’ve got you covered.

Learning a new skill is a rewarding way to increase your knowledge, meet new people, and find enjoyment in your everyday life. If your goal this year is to learn something new, we have some ideas for you.

For People Who Want to Be Head Chef

If you want to be head chef, if you find yourself endlessly watching yummy cooking videos online, then maybe it's time to brush up on your cooking skills.

Whether you're a sous chef or a seasoned professional, there are always new avenues to explore when it comes to learning to bake and cook.

Even if you're already a great cook, maybe it's time you take up baking. And maybe you're already a great baker, and it's time to take that skill even further with something like cake decorating.

A great resource for learning new cooking skills is local classes. In many cities, the recreation department will host cooking classes at an affordable rate.

If this option isn't available in your city, consider asking somebody who's a great cook or baker to teach you. Chances are you have a friend or a family member who you could learn a lot from.

Focusing on a specific area of cuisine is a good way to help you hone in on what you want to learn and make a concrete plan. Because learning to cook can happen anytime, having a plan will help you stay on task as you increase your cooking knowledge.

If you want a little advice from someone who has taken cooking classes before, a bread-baking class is always a great idea, cake decorating is super fun, and the basic meal prep class is a great way to increase your cooking skills and alleviate a little stress during the work week.

If cooking or baking isn’t your passion and you still want to spend a little bit of time in the kitchen, maybe mixology is your calling. Learning to mix up your favorite drinks at home will not only save you money, but it will impress your friends as well.

In that same vein, tapping into your inner barista in learning how to make all the best dreams from your favorite local coffee house is another great way to increase your skills and save money.

For People Who Want to Build

Some of us wish we had the skills to build our own house or our own furniture. But for most of us who want to learn to build things, we need to start a little bit smaller.

If you want to get into woodworking, the first thing you're going to need to do is learn a little bit about the skill itself. Learning about woodworking before you dive in will give you a good foundation to fall back on.

When you're out starting with building, we recommend finding instructions or a set of project plans that will walk you through all of the supplies that you need and the step by steps of the process.

Start simple, don't bite off more than you can chew, or you'll end up frustrated. You can start by crafting something small, and then work your way up to turn your own table legs.

Starting small will also give you the chance to get familiar with the tools and machinery that are often used in woodworking. These tools and Machinery have a learning curve, so keep your chin up when it gets tricky.

Woodworking has several facets, which building has several facets, so make sure that you explore areas that you're interested in. You can build small home decor items like frames, or you can tackle something much larger, like a table or greenhouse.

If you find that building isn't your speed, but you still want to work in this realm, give furniture updating and flipping a try.

Furniture flipping is another way to work with items that will update your home, but furniture flipping generally requires far fewer power tools.

We recommend starting with something like a dresser or table when your first dipping your toes into the world of furniture flipping, and as long as you've got some determination and a good sander, you should be good to go.

There are tons of tutorials that will walk you through how to flip furniture, and it's smart to do some research ahead of time so that you know the difference between oil and water-based stains, and the benefits of painting furniture versus staining furniture.

A little bit of knowledge goes a long way.

For People Who Want to be the Pinterest Mom

Every now and then even we get the inkling that it's time to buckle down and become a full-time Pinterest mom. Pinterest Mom is an internet term used to coin those crafty moms whose projects always look top-notch.

Here's the secret about Pinterest moms, though, they don't do it all. No one can.

So if you want to step up your crafting game, pick a few areas of crafting that you'd like to learn about. No Pinterest mom can do it all, no human being can do it all, so get picky when it comes to choosing a new skill to learn.

Once you've picked two to four new skills that you'd like to work on in your journey to becoming more crafty, make a schedule and a plan for how you will actually acquire those new skills.

It's super easy to get online and get a lot of ideas and then get overwhelmed with the process of everything and never actually pick up the new skill that you intended to pick up.

If you actually want to get somewhere and get a little more crafty, you're going to need to buckle down and make a plan.

For us, it makes sense to focus on one new skill a quarter, or one new skill every six months if we only want to learn two in a year.

Whatever the timeline looks like for you, write it down on paper so that you have a plan to stick to.

Once you know how to make a plan, it's time to pick the skills you want to learn. There are endless amounts of options for skills that will bolster your reputation as a Pinterest mom. It's simply about picking the skills that you actually want to learn.

A few crafty skills to consider: cupcake baking and decorating, sewing, card making, canning, Cricut crafting, gardening, collage making, gift basket assembling, or DIY home decorating.

For People Who Want to Move

If you're looking to pick up a skill that gets you moving and shaking, we recommend yoga or pickleball. These two suggestions may seem a little disjointed, but they're the same at the core—they get you moving.

We love that both of these skills require very little equipment and can both be thoroughly enjoyed even at a beginner's level.

If you're interested in picking up yoga, you're going to need a yoga mat, yoga block, and maybe some resistance bands, but those can come later on down the road.

You're also going to need some sort of yoga tutorial, class, or instruction. We like the idea that yoga can be done at home, which means you don't have to drive to a gym and pay for an expensive class if you don't want to.

Even if you've done a little yoga before, putting yoga into your skill set can be done by yogis at every level because there is always so much more to learn with the practice of yoga.

Yoga can be an intense workout or more meditative it's about what you need during your personal practice—which is part of what makes yoga such a great skill to have.

Don't be intimidated by the names of the poses, focus on learning how to correctly enter and exit each pose—they keep your body safe, and your mind focused.

For people looking for an activity that can be played with others, pickleball is a great option. More and more places have pickleball courts popping up, and you may have one in your area that you don't even know about.

To start with pickleball, you'll need to brush up on the rules, grab pickleball paddles and a pickleball, and test out a few practice shots before you play with others.

The game is relatively easy to learn and can be enjoyed by people of all ages. Because pickleball is less intense than a game like tennis, more people will be able to enjoy and play the game competitively.

To learn pickleball, you may want to take a class for your local Department of Parks and Recreation or practice with a friend who's been playing for longer than you have.

For People Who Want to Get Grounded

Meditation Is an excellent way to get grounded, and it's definitely a skill. Because meditation is a skill that you have to learn, be patient with yourself as you practice is grounding technique.

We recommend learning meditation in an environment with professionals so that you can best learn how a meditation practice can work for you personally, but there are so many great apps out there too.

Creating a space to meditate in your home, even if it's just a small section of a closet or room, will help you intentionally set aside time to focus on yourself and focus on learning how to become more grounded and centered.

Breathwork is a part of meditation that can be practiced on its own, it's definitely another skill that takes a little bit of work to learn but has a big payoff in the end.

A few years ago, we decided to take up meditation, breathwork, and yoga as our New Year's resolution, and the skills—though we don't use them every single day—have been very helpful in our lives.

If you're feeling ungrounded in your space at home, practice your organization skills. Declutter and organize in your space is a great way to add an element of grounding to your space.

Whether you use the Marie kondo method or a different form of organization, getting organized is a skill that you can learn and practice every single day.

Font a little inspiration for getting organized? Just watch an episode or two of The Home Edit.

Having a space that is calming can have benefits for your physical and mental well-being, and you can develop skills that benefit your life in both ways.

For People Who Want to Side Hustle

Sometimes a skill naturally turns into a side hustle, but sometimes you're looking for a side hustle, and you need a few skills to jumpstart the process.

There's no shame in a side hustle, especially if it gives you the chance to make money from doing something that you absolutely love.

If you want to learn a new skill to potentially turn into a business opportunity, we have one big recommendation. Dive deep.

Dive in all the way and learn the ins and outs of the skill, and become an expert. There are so many people out there who use their skills as a side hustle, but there are very few people out there who are experts in their skill.

Becoming an expert in your skill, putting in the work at the beginning, will pay off as you're able to set yourself apart from the competition and ultimately bring in more money.

If you're looking for some great skills to turn into a side Hustle you may consider product photography, embroidery, customization projects, or even cooking or baking.

It's important that you follow all of the laws and regulations in your city and state surrounding your side hustle, and it's also important that you pick a side hustle you genuinely enjoyed

Don't go out and start learning how to pour all-natural candles if you hate candles. Don't start making digital downloads for elementary school teachers if you've never been an elementary school teacher.

Pick a side hustle that naturally fits your personality and is an area of enjoyment for you, because you'll be spending a lot of time learning and developing the skills.