Of all the cutest, funniest moments with essential life lessons, watching babies learn to walk was the most profound.
As a young boy growing up, I loved taking care of my siblings, some of who were babies at the time. The humor I derive from their actions in ignorance is epic. But being there to protect, and care for them was something that I took a lot of pride in.
In the summer, I came across a group of children playing in a park, and a little a baby boy sitting on the field with his toy. Beside him was his mother, and older siblings, encouraging him to walk. The scene left me with smiles wondering how cute babies can be. But something about the baby trying to walk caught my attention as I noticed some crucial lessons in life. Who would have thought that there are essential lessons our little ones can teach us with no effort at all.
Here are 5 Crucial Lessons Babies Can Teach You About LIfe From Learning to Walk.
Have a compelling goal
When the baby in the park saw his toy at a distance, he made an attempt to stand and walk towards it. He left everything else, his eyes focused on his toy. For a moment, nothing else mattered until he got his toy so he could play with it. His mother and brothers smiled as they watched him begin what seemed like a long walk to where his toy was.
It was evident that the baby is learning to walk as he makes a step and falls on his butt. At that moment, I gained clarity. The baby had found a good reason to get up and make an effort to get his toy.
The thought hit me, babies can’t write and haven’t developed their speaking ability to share their views, ideas, thoughts but they have one thing that was impossible to conceal, a goal. One that every fiber of their being says “that is my goal”.
There’s always something babies go for each time they make an effort to walk. It could be reaching for the comfort of their mother’s arms or an object that interests them like a toy. It’s impressive to see the relentless attitude babies portray even after putting them away from an object they desire.
The drive the baby in the park displayed in going after his toy was evidence that it was a compelling goal for him at that moment. This got me thinking, and questioning myself; are your goals compelling? Are you driven enough to go after it no matter what stands in the way? What steps can you take to reach your goals?
After this encounter, I realized the key lesson there was having a goal that excites and compels you toward it. Like all babies, you were born with the drive to go after the things you want in life. But first, you must find that object of your desire compelling enough to drive you regardless of the challenges you encounter.
Take baby steps
Has anyone ever advised you to take “baby steps” in something you tried to do or learn? I got to see “baby steps” upfront, and It is undoubtedly cute. It is beautiful to see babies start small with baby steps in learning to walk. As I sat in the park watching the baby try to walk, it occurred to me that many today don’t recall applying these baby steps at an earlier stage in life. And grow, forgetting it is crucial in achieving in their goals.
Nowadays people as so focused on how they could succeed fast, but forget it all begins with tiny steps in the form of small actions or decisions they must make. The same is genuine about anyone wanting to learn a skill; you most often want to be the best without putting in those little extra efforts that will amount to being the best. Baby steps are much more comfortable and more likely to have a high chance of succeeding. If that baby step you took was a mistake, it becomes a lesson, one you can re-adapt before taking your next step.
Start with baby steps towards learning that skill, your career, launching your business, being happy and achieving your goals. It could take a while to get the results you expect, but it will undoubtedly be worth it just as a baby finally walks after months of trying. And as David Emerald said – “You don’t have to have everything figured out before you begin. That’s the magic of baby steps.”
Fail, fall, and get back up
Learning to walk is hard for babies, and often takes between 9 – 15 months to walk. From the moment they are born they start developing the strength and skills they need to walk. Let’s not overlook the fact that they fail, fall big on their butt, head, and sometimes get hurt if not overseen by their guardian or parents.
Watching babies experience such failures of falling can be scary, knowing that they could be seriously hurt. But what I have observed as you must have, is that each time they fall, they get back up and do it again. I often thought the fear of falling again would keep babies from ever attempting to walk again. Such fear has no hold on them.
Babies get back up every single time regardless of the many times they fall and cry. I watched in awe, wondering why we grew to give up so easily each time we fail when it is in our nature to be tenacious? We fail, fall and hardly get up, yet while we were babies, we rose each time.
“You have not failed until you quit trying.”
― Gordon B. Hinckley Surround yourself with people who encourage you
As a baby learns to stand, he may need some help figuring out how to move a foot while retaining balance. That’s where his family members or guardian comes in. You will often find someone (mother, siblings, relatives…) supporting the baby as he learns to walk.
Everywhere you find a baby learning to walk, there’s always someone there to encourage the baby to walk by standing or kneeling in front of him and holding out their hands. You might see them holding both hands of the baby as he walks towards them. He’ll probably have tools such as toddle truck or push toy provided to aid in the cognitive learning and muscle build in order to walk.
The same is applicable to everyone learning a skill or working towards their goals in life. Always surround yourself with people who encourage you, help bring out the best in you. Roy Bennett said it all in his quote;
“Surround yourself with people who believe in your dreams, encourage your ideas, support your ambitions, and bring out the best in you.”
Enjoy the process
Too often we find ourselves engulfed by the thoughts of achieving our goals and living our dreams that we forget how important it is to enjoy the process as we work towards it.
Yes, the journey to reaching your goals is filled with varying experiences some better than others and some we wish we never experience. You’ll rarely meet someone that enjoys the failures he encounters as he strives to achieve his goals. However, babies have an apt to enjoy failing in whatever they find themselves doing. Learning to walk is, in fact, another activity that a baby enjoys. Regardless of the difficulty, numerous times they fall and fail, it’s always fun. Babies enjoy the process and have as much fun as they can while at it.
How often do you sit back to enjoy the process as you move towards your goals?
“As your training integrates Mind, Body, and Spirit, enjoy the process. Your journey to the marathon finish will last a few hours. Your journey to the start will influence a lifetime.”
― Gina Greenlee.
Repeat, repeat, repeat
We all experienced that magical moment when, after days, months, or even years of practicing and repeating something, we finally nail it. I have seen a baby learning to walk but didn’t in the fifteenth month from birth. It was troubling for his mother as she constantly worried about why he hadn’t started walking. When he finally walked in his sixteenth-month joy-filled the mother’s heart as smiles spread wide across her face.
Through repetition, the baby developed his cognitive skills, movement, coordination, balance, and strength to walk. There are several reasons why repetition is important;
Repetition helps to strengthen the brain’s neural processors for learning
• Repetition teaches you to master and retain knowledge
• Repetition provides the opportunity for practice and reinforcement
• Repetition is needed for skill mastery and success and more.
The same principle is applicable in any area of life, from learning a skill to being the best at it. The law of repetition is paramount in achieving your goals and it offers great value to you in the process of working towards your goal. While you were a baby, you applied this principle. You mastered the art of walking, along with other things. Repetition requires applying the lessons shared here from the first to fifth and reapplying them over and over to reach your goals in life.
Final Thought
These five crucial lessons are needed in achieving anything you set out to achieve in life. Are there lessons you have learned from babies that are worth sharing? Share in the comments below so we could learn from you.
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