Speaking of: Trying Anything Twice

I was watching the comedy show Impractical Jokers a few years ago when I heard a phrase that wasn't intended to be anything more than a funny line to get a few viewer chuckles, but I ended up finding it really clever and actually startlingly wise (two words which I would almost never use to describe the show in any other context.)

The phrase was this: "I'll try anything twice: once to see if I like it, and twice to see if I was right the first time."

I have absolutely no memory of what the context of the line was at this point, and although I like to believe it was in reference to some elaborate sex dare, it was clearly something innocuous enough that I totally forgot it. In any event, I found that idea — "I'll try anything twice" — to be not only a witty one-liner, but also a perfect embodiment of three completely separate ideas describing how I form beliefs, sealed within only four words. Let's break this sentence down.

• "I'll try anything": three words that represent total open-mindedness and spontaneity. I'm no stranger to having strong first impressions or knee-jerk reactions to things, but I also try as hard as I can to not let that get in the way of me actually experiencing things for myself. Occasionally those knee-jerk reactions get the better of me. But I think anyone that knows me well would say I'm an open-minded person that is usually down to experiment and try new things, and I find that very important.

• "I'll try anything twice": as important as I think it is to form opinions, I think it's equally as important to push yourself to challenge those opinions. Sometimes I'll try something like mountain biking once and find it absolutely terrifying, and then I'll try it again a few days later and find it absolutely exhilarating. Sometimes I'll try a food like cabbage-filled bao buns and think it tastes like dehydrated sewage, and then I'll try it again a few days later and realize it still tastes like dehydrated sewage. But at least I can say it with more gusto the second time. I don't think any opinion can be too firmly held if you never took an opportunity to challenge it.

• "I'll try anything twice.": the period at the end of the phrase is the focal point here. You should expose yourself to as much as you can, and you should challenge those first impressions whenever the chance arises. But sometimes you just won't jive with things, and that's fine. Focus in life comes through saying no sometimes. If I've tried something and didn't like it, and took the opportunity to challenge that opinion and still didn't like it, then I'm not going back for a third helping. There are always new things to experience, and I'd rather move on to something else rather than hope bidets are pleasant to use on the third try.