Each day we add to our personal wisdom.  We crawl before we walk, we learn our abc’s before we read, we even gestate for nine months before we are born.  Many of our greatest life achievements are the result of little steps.  A step at a time, one foot in front of the other as we learn the ways of life.

Sometimes we rail against the process.  We want to be a terrific guitarist but it’s taking so much time.  We just want to lose the twenty pounds – right now!  We want to move into our perfect home, but saving that down payment is getting in the way.  Whether it’s planning your wedding or your retirement, every small step you take helps you shape the result.  To ease the path, be sure to celebrate every successful small step.  Think of each as a tiny win; together, they become big wins.

A philosopher once said, “He who would learn to fly one day must first learn to stand and walk and run and climb and dance.  One cannot fly into flying.”

Rarely does life change miraculously; solutions don’t just show up on your doorstep.  You’re not going to get a job or a promotion unless you work at it.  Life is a process, a step-by-step, baby step process.

Imagine you’ve just learned that your Mom has Alzheimer’s – you are heartbroken and you feel overwhelmed.  The weight of this reality, that nothing will make her better, has rocked your world.  How, you wonder, will you be able to get her through this?  For that matter, how will you ever get through it?

Pull it apart, start to see it as a group of smaller issues, each requiring attention.  Her drug treatment, her medical team, where she’ll be treated, her care-givers, her finances, even noticing her most alert times so visits can be arranged – each is an important part of the big picture. Look at each aspect separately.  Using baby steps you'll create a successful plan for your Mom.

Tackling each issue separately allows you to make good decisions, one at a time.  Plus, you may be able to share the load, asking family members or friends to take on one aspect of the overall plan.  Nothing will change the fact of your Mom’s illness.  Using a step-by-step process will ensure she’ll have the best care and that you’re also caring for yourself.  

Our achievements are not the result of a big bang.  Life doesn’t happen all at once.  Our lives evolve and change over the years.  We use the wisdom we’ve gained to shape each new chapter in our life.