When is the last time you had the creative courage to give your dream a chance—especially when you’ve got a message burning in your heart, but the path forward feels uncertain?
One snowy weekend, my encouragement came from my 3-year-old.
Would You Have the Creative Courage to Build an Igloo?
We’d been waiting for the perfect kind of snowfall to use our igloo-building kit. With a fresh storm and school canceled, Friday was the day to give her dream a chance.
The snow was moist, dense, and just the right amount of melty. It packed beautifully in our Elsa-and-Anna ice-brick mold. We set to work.
Of course, I figured she’d tire out after building a few rows of snow bricks. I wasn’t too worried about how to build the rounded top. Surely we’d stop long before we got there.
But I underestimated her—and in doing so, I got a crash course in what creativity and courage can look like when it’s pure, playful, and persistent.
Three brick-layers into our semi-circle and I was ready to call it a win. My daughter, however, was just getting started. She pointed to the little diagram on the box showing two kids making a perfect dome with a tunnel doorway.
Mommy, it needs a door. We still need to make the top.”
“I don’t know how to make the top,” I told her. “It just falls over.”
You can do it. I know you can.”
I didn’t expect to be cheered on by someone thigh-high wearing a puffy purple snowsuit, but her belief gave me just enough courage to keep going. I built two more rows. Then suggested, “Why don’t we just leave it like this and call it a snow fort?”
She wasn’t having it.
No. It needs a top like the picture. You can do it, Mommy!”
So I tried. I stacked snow bricks into a dome. They crumbled. I tried again. I patched up the weak spots.
And minutes before dinnertime—though we lost half the entrance—I finished the top.
She crawled inside with a grin. Then came out, looked at the box again, and said:
It’s not the same. It needs a door.”
Sigh.
I couldn’t help but laugh, both proud of her persistence and exhausted by it. Here I was, amazed we’d come this far. But she was already envisioning something more complete, more beautiful.
“It’s supper time. And it’s our first time, sweetie. It takes practice to make one like the picture. This is pretty good, isn’t it?”
She gave it one last look. “Let’s make a new one—the right way.”
Creative Courage Matters
I thought about that exchange all evening.
Her persistence. Her clear vision. Her unwavering encouragement.
And how much I needed to hear those words—especially in moments when my own creative courage was running low.
Whether you’re writing or building or dreaming again, creativity courage matters. It bridges the gap between intention and action.
You can do it. I know you can.”
Those words matter. Especially when you’re trying to create something meaningful.
Whether you’re writing a book, launching a project, or building something that feels impossible from scratch, encouragement can be the spark that keeps you going.
When Creativity and Courage Collide
Maybe you’re in the middle of your own “snow fort” moment.
You started with vision, energy, and excitement. But now it feels like the dome top keeps crumbling—or maybe you’ve already talked yourself out of finishing it at all.
Here’s what my daughter reminded me that day:
- You don’t have to feel ready to begin. Just start stacking the snow bricks—words, ideas, rough drafts.
- Encouragement matters more than perfection. Sometimes the only difference between stopping and finishing is one person who believes in you.
- Progress is messy. But that doesn’t mean it’s not worth it.
- You may think you’re building a snow fort. But someone else might see the potential for something much bigger.
You Were Made to Build Something That Lasts
The creative process will always ask you to believe beyond what you can currently see. That’s the heartbeat of creative courage.
Keep showing up. Keep building. Let creativity and courage partner together—because you were made to create something that matters. Maybe today’s the day to try again—to write one more page, to believe your message matters, to let someone cheer you on.
You can do it. I know you can.
You don’t need a perfect plan. Just a spark of belief—sometimes borrowed from someone else—and the courage to build anyway.
Ask yourself:
- Where can I receive encouragement toward my #madeformore dream this week?
- How can I speak encouragement into someone else’s dream?
The world needs your voice, your vision, your story.
It won’t be perfect—but it will be real. And that’s what people need most.
More Creative Courage For You:
Is God Is Calling Me to Write This Book: A Tug You Can’t Ignore
Book Writing for Self Discovery, Growth Mindset and More Benefits
How to Get Through Creator’s Block: 4 Mindset Shifts to Help You Finish Your Book
