Marcus Tullius Cicero said, “Everything has a small beginning.”
We see an example of this in the 1991 movie, What About Bob? Richard Dreyfus plays a psychiatrist who has written a book called Baby Steps, which Bill Murray’s character takes to heart and uses to help him step out of his neurotic life.
Robert Taibbi says, “The key to solving most problems is creating small successes.”
How does this work in recovery? We have consistently used this space to lay out small steps to take to maintain sobriety: go to meetings, make calls, see a therapist, practice the 3-second rule, follow the 20-minute principle, etc. Today, let me suggest a few things to avoid while taking small steps toward recovery:
- Don’t be emotionally driven.
- Don’t be overly rigid.
- Avoid perfectionism.
- Watch out for indecision.
- Don’t be passive in getting started.
- Don’t wait another second to get started.
Jesus promised, “One who is faithful in a very little is also faithful in much” (Luke 16:10). So get started today, one step at a time.
Recovery Step: Take baby steps in the right direction. But also be aware of the pitfalls above.
