Think Like a Kid
What Children Teach Us About Creativity, Failure, and Building Big Things!
The most impactful leaders are imaginative, curious, resilient, authentic, and collaborative — just like kids. Tap back into those qualities and stop letting "professionalism" dull your creative edge.
Before we got “professional,” we were wildly imaginative, brave, and curious. Turns out, that’s exactly what the best leaders still are.
If you’ve ever spent 15 minutes with a kid, you’ve already witnessed what unfiltered creativity and unshakable confidence look like. And if you’ve ever spent a full day with them… well, God bless you and your caffeine intake.
In our house, we’ve got three amazing kiddos: Ava and Andy (the 7-year-old twins) and Kiara, our 4-year-old firecracker. Ava is the artsy scientist with a soft spot for our current foster puppy, Slater. Andy is basically a walking weather channel who can tell you more about tornadoes and other natural disasters than most meteorologists. And Kiara? She’s the queen of princess games and emotional jujitsu. If she asks you to play, good luck saying no.
They’ve each taught me more about creativity, communication, and leadership than most books ever could. Here’s what they’re showing me about life, and how all of it applies to business too.
Imagination Has No Budget
This week, the kids turned the trampoline into a full-blown natural disaster simulator. Andy, our in-house meteorologist, would call out scenarios, "Volcanic eruption in 3...2...1!" or "Massive earthquake incoming!" while Ava and Kiara reacted with full dramatic flair. Everyone would bounce around like chaos had an energy drink.
Soccer balls were flying as "meteor showers," disaster sirens were being made from their mouths, followed by a brief intermission to take a drink of water and get a snack. No plan. No script. Just wildly creative imagination on a trampoline.
The lesson in this is, stop waiting for the new software, the right hire, or the perfect market condition. Use your imagination to build something scrappy. Innovate with what you have. Constraints don’t kill creativity, they invite it.
They Ask “Why?” Until the Truth Falls Out
Andy can ask 19 consecutive questions about hurricanes without blinking. “Why do they spin? Why are they named after people? Why can’t we stop them? Why can’t we go inside one?”
Kids ask until you get real or tap out. They don’t settle for the surface answer.
In business: We stop asking “why” too soon. We accept “because that’s how we’ve always done it.” But curiosity reveals gaps. It challenges systems. Keep asking. Dig deeper. Let the toddler energy live on in your strategy sessions.
Failure Isn’t Personal, It’s Part of Play
Kiara recently attempted to jump from the third stair on our deck to the ground, skirt flying, eyes wide. She landed like a sack of flour, got up laughing, and shouted, “I almost made it!” Then tried again.
Kids don’t spiral after failure. They don’t overthink or attach shame to a flop. They just reset and try again.
In business: We treat failure like it’s a character flaw. Like it disqualifies us. But real progress? It’s built on flops. Learn to laugh, adjust, and take the next jump. With or without the cape.
They Dream Big (Because No One Told Them Not To Yet)
When we ask the kids what they want to be when they grow up, they say: “A candy maker, a color scientist, ice cream taster, and maybe someone who chases down storms.” Zero hesitation.
Kids go big because they haven’t learned how to downsize dreams yet.
In business: Somewhere along the line, we trade wonder for practicality. We let experience dull our imagination. Shake that off. Dream something unreasonable. Then build toward it like a kid with construction paper and a deadline.
They See Possibility Everywhere
The other day, Ava turned a paper towel roll into a telescope. Kiara used it as a unicorn horn. Andy pretended it was a weather detector. One object. Three inventions. Zero adult supervision...at least that's what they thought.
In business: The best innovators don’t wait for new resources—they repurpose the old ones. Train yourself to see potential, not just problems. That’s where the breakthroughs live.
Authenticity is Built-In
Kiara will walk into a room full of strangers dressed in a tutu, cowboy boots, and a tiara and own the place. No hesitation. No performance. Just pure self-expression.
In business: We spend so much energy trying to “look” professional that we forget to be real. People don’t connect with polished, they connect with personal. Be the cowboy-booted version of yourself. That’s who they’ll remember.
They Collaborate Without Ego
We’ll be at the park and within five minutes, all three kids are playing with total strangers. No resume exchange. No “what school do you go to?” Just instant team chemistry.
In business: Imagine what we could create if we led like that, open, curious, quick to trust, slow to judge. Less posturing, more partnering. Great teams aren’t built through power plays. They’re built like playground friendships, fast, simple, and all-in.
Final Thoughts
Kids aren’t just future adults, they’re unfiltered versions of the best parts of us. The creative, brave, heart-forward parts we forget to use when we’re in “professional mode.”
So this week, whether you're building a business, launching a project, or just trying to be better, try thinking like a kid. Ask “why.” Imagine big. Wear the metaphorical tiara. And don’t be afraid to leap from the third stair, even if you land flat and laugh about it.
There’s a lot of wisdom in sticky hands and wild ideas. You just have to be willing to get a little messy to find it.
Written By: Alexander Jeffery
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