Tiny Experiments: Why Small, Playful Steps Might Be the Most Powerful Way Forward

I love a good goal like any other. There’s something so energizing about having a direction — a vision of who we’re becoming, what we’re creating, or simply how we want to feel a few months from now.

But here’s the thing I’ve also learned about myself (maybe you relate?):

the moment I start mapping out all the steps it will take to get there…

I can go from inspired → overwhelmed → frozen → “maybe I just don’t have what it takes” in record time.

One step not going as planned? Suddenly, the whole plan feels wobbly. And before I know it, I’ve tossed the entire thing into the “maybe this isn’t for me” pile.

Enter: Tiny Experiments — my new favorite antidote to perfectionism

I’ve been reading Tiny Experiments lately, and it has been such a breath of fresh air.

The idea is simple but kind of revolutionary: instead of trying to perfectly execute a long, linear plan from A to Z, we let ourselves experiment.

We try one small thing at a time.

We follow curiosity.

We observe what happens.

And we let the next step reveal itself based on what we learn — not based on some big, rigid blueprint.

The book talks about how big changes rarely come from big heroic actions. They come from tiny, playful, low-stakes experiments — done consistently, with an open mind.

Which… honestly… sounds a lot more like real life than the January-me who thinks future-me will somehow have boundless energy, zero cravings, and a color-coded plan for everything.

Why this approach feels like such a relief

Tiny experiments remove the pressure of needing to get everything “right.”

They don’t require the perfect conditions.

They don’t ask us to predict the future.

They’re more like:

• “Let me just try this for a day or two and see what happens.”

• “Let me follow the smallest spark of interest.”

• “Let me make it fun instead of heavy.”

  
  

The core message of the book (as I understood it)

Here’s the heart of it:

• Big goals are great, but they aren’t linear. Real growth looks more like a labyrinth than a staircase.

• Experimentation is more sustainable than discipline. When something feels like play instead of pressure, we’re far more likely to keep going.

• Curiosity beats willpower. Willpower burns out. Curiosity feeds itself.

• You learn faster by trying than by planning. The moment you take a tiny step, reality gives you feedback you could never get from thinking alone.

• Tiny steps compound. A 1% shift repeated is more powerful than a 100% shift abandoned.

• Self-trust grows every time you show up imperfectly. Not because you nailed the plan, but because you kept going.

How this is showing up for me lately

Reading this book honestly felt like getting permission to stop trying to architect the perfect path — and to stop believing I need to know the whole route before I take the first step.

Because the truth is: I usually can come up with the next tiny step.I usually do have something I can try today — something playful, or even a little weird — that would teach me more than overthinking ever will.

A gentle invitation

If you’re someone who also loves goals but hates the pressure that comes with them…or if you’ve ever thrown in the towel the moment something didn’t unfold perfectly…

Maybe this week, choose one tiny experiment.

Something silly.

Something doable.

Something that takes five minutes or less.

Then just… observe. Get curious. Let it be fun. And see what grows from there.

And if your inner experimenter is buzzing, here’s a link to the book Tiny Experiments — it’s the one that sparked all these thoughts.

Photo by Ashley Batz on Unsplash