The Power of Baby Steps: What My Crawling Daughter and Wobbly Business Taught Me About Purposeful Growth
What Crawling, Falling, and Trying Again Taught Me About Building a Soul-Aligned Life
Where do I even begin with how much becoming a mom has changed me? It has cracked my heart wide open in ways I never knew were possible. In ways it has made me softer and in other ways it has hardened me. Some days feel like absolute magic, and other days, well, let’s just say they can feel a bit messy. All of them, though, have taught me something.
Some days I am taught that progress is progress and growth and growth, no matter what I do or don’t get done that day. If the only thing I do that day is play with my kids and keep them fed, and alive, then by golly I had a great day and got a lot done! Other days, I am able to have designated time to work on my business and knock a task or two out and those days are great too.
Lately, I’ve found myself watching my 6-month-old daughter as she is trying to learn how to crawl. Her tiny body wobbles forward, then backward, then collapses into a little frustrated puddle. And almost as quickly as she’s frustrated then she’s smiling and happy again. Over and over, she reaches and wobbles. She pushes. She tries. Sometimes she cries. But mostly, she giggles and wiggles and keeps moving forward in her own sweet, imperfect rhythm.
Watching her grow and remembering watching my son learn to walk over three and half years ago is such a gentle reminder that we were all born to learn, to grow, to try new things, and to not do any of it perfectly the first time. It is all in our own timing, at our own pace, in the exact season that it is meant for.
What Crawling and First Steps Remind Us
A while back, I heard Ed Mylett say, “Children are closest to God because they’ve just come from Him. They’re limitless in imagination and fearless in pursuit.”
When he said that, the truth behind it kind of stopped me in my tracks. It is so true. Children are these amazing souls that know no different than a huge world full of unknown possibility, limitless imagination, and just pure joy and love. They don’t know fear until it is taught to them.
When I look at both my children and see them learning and growing right before my eyes, I see what it means to try without fear, and to try without any concept of time. No rush at all. Neither of them cares if they fall down, though there may be some tears, they usually disappear fairly quickly to begin the next attempt. They aren’t comparing themselves. They don’t second-guess whether they’re “ready.” They just keep going.
And the beauty of it?
They seem to genuinely enjoy the process. The journey. The trying.
They are fully present for every little milestone, every inch forward. And they celebrate themselves when they do something, big or small, the same way we should be celebrating our own little victories daily.
Real Growth Happens in the Baby Steps
In the world we live in, it’s easy to think success happens overnight. We’re sold a version of life where you go from idea to income, dream to reality, burnout to breakthrough… with no awkward middle. But that’s not how growth works. Not in business. Not in healing. Not in motherhood. Not in real life. I have been blessed to live the awkward middle moments of all of these, some more than once.
The truth is:
No one skips the baby steps. Everyone has the messy middle.
Those little efforts, the ones we think don’t matter, are the very ones that build our strength, character, clarity, and resilience. They’re often the messiest, slowest, and most frustrating… and they’re also the most transformative. They define our values and what we truly desire in life and in business. Those messy little baby steps are the ones that define us and need to be celebrated.
Babies don’t have an inner critic yet. They don’t wonder if they’re doing it wrong or worry what other people will think. They’re too focused on the next inch forward. What if we gave ourselves that same grace daily?
Entrepreneurship Takes Baby Steps, Too
Building a heart-centered business and life is not an overnight leap. It is a series of a thousand little steps, little falls, and little acts of bravery to try again. It is the slow and purposeful movement to what is right and meant for you. You won’t arrive there all at once. You build it with every brave email you send, every imperfect product you create, every single time you choose to keep going.
The baby steps matter.
They may not go viral. They won’t make you money right away. They might feel invisible. But they’re vital to your growth and they matter. Because step by step, you’re becoming the version of you that you’re meant to be. You are building the life that you dream of, for you and your family. You are building a business that will make an impact. You are planting the seeds of your dreams and giving them the strongest roots possible with slow, intentional growth.
Give Yourself Grace to Crawl Before You Walk
When my son was learning to walk, I remember the cheers and excitement that came with every wobbly step. I remember being such a cheerleader for him. Now, with my daughter trying to learn to crawl, I cheer her on too. I whisper, “You’re doing amazing. You’ve got this girl!”
Imagine if we spoke to ourselves that way.
What if we offered our own hearts and minds a bit of grace instead of guilt, softness instead of shame, and encouragement instead of criticism? What if we were our own biggest cheerleader.
So today, I want you to know:
It’s okay if you’re still figuring it out.
It’s okay if your dream feels far away.
It’s okay to go slow.
And it’s okay to fall—as long as you keep getting back up.
It’s okay to cry. And it’s okay to rest.
Because you’re walking toward something beautiful. And the only thing you have to do right now… is take the next small, brave, messy step.
You’ve got this girl! You are doing amazing!
