Growth Is All but Impossible if You Don’t Accept This Simple Truth

Yet, so few of us do.

Photo by Nico Smit on Unsplash

Here’s a riddle for you: what do adults avoid at all costs, yet toddlers welcome every day?

Have you ever watched a toddler take its first steps? It’s an amazing thing. This little creature, after countless tries, finally coordinates all the right movements to put one foot in front of the other and walk.

Toddlers don’t care about getting things right, do they? They aren’t self-conscious. They don’t care what they’ll “look like” if they fall. They keep trying, over and over, despite repeated failures.

We often look upon children in awe because of how quickly they grow and change. It’s remarkable. They’re learning machines.

So, what makes them so special? I mean, as adults, don’t we all struggle with even the smallest bit of growth and change? How can children so quickly and radically alter themselves when it takes us years or decades to make even the smallest changes, if we’re so lucky?

Yes, some of it comes down to biology. As children, it seems we were primed for exploring and learning. Then, at some point along the way, exploring and learning gave way to maximizing immediate rewards and avoiding costs. As adults, we take on a different perspective: we need to be able…