If you’re newly vegan, or striving to sustain your plant-based diet long-term, learning how to cook is invaluable. Being able to prepare quick, healthy, delicious vegan meals will make it easy to thrive as you incorporate new habits into your lifestyle. However, many of us are intimidated by cooking. That's normal. The first step to becoming a great vegan cook is learning how to learn.

It's easy to be intimidated by all the “expert chefs” and beautifully crafted meals we see in the media. Remember that every single one of them started out as a beginner, just like you. We often feel self-conscious as we practice new things, because we are comparing ourselves to others and criticizing our own results. However, no one is immune to failure, including those experts in vegan cooking! They can be easily frustrated too when they're making a new dish and it doesn't turn out the way they'd hoped.

Your best bet is to get comfortable with being a beginner. We are all beginners with various things throughout our lives, and embracing this process will make all the difference as you become a better cook (not to mention a better writer, salsa dancer, animal guardian, etc.)

Especially as we age, we are often resistant to trying unfamiliar things. We're embarrassed because we feel like we should already know how to do it all. Don't let bumps along the way stop you - learning new skills promotes a healthier brain, mind, and body!

Some tips to help you along the way:

- Embrace the beginner within. Be proud to be a beginner- it means you want to keep learning and growing!

- Relax and focus on what you’re doing in the moment, not the outcome.

- Practice, practice, practice- and at each stage, remind yourself: "I am exactly where I need to be."