If you had told me years ago that one of my most recognized titles would be “potty training expert,” I might have laughed. But it turns out, potty training was the perfect entry point to launch Behave Your Best—and it happened almost by accident.
When my son was a baby, I navigated what many moms face: the tug-of-war between career and family. I knew I didn’t want to leave him for 8 to 10 hours a day, but I also wanted to use my training as a behavior analyst to help families.
One afternoon, I was talking with a friend whose nephew was struggling with potty training. Her sister had tried everything and was overwhelmed, worried he’d start kindergarten still in pull-ups. I offered to help. Within 24 hours, her nephew was successfully using the potty. My friend turned to me and said, “Jamie, you could make a business out of this. So many parents need help with potty training.”
That idea stuck. I thought I would start small with just a couple of families each month while staying home with my son. So I made fliers and pinned them on coffee shop bulletin boards. Soon, I got my first call from a desperate parent of a five-year-old who still wasn’t potty trained. We worked together, and the transformation was incredible. That family was later featured in Minnesota Parent magazine, sharing how life-changing the experience had been.
Over time, I realized that potty training was often just the surface issue. What families really needed was support in understanding the behavioral barriers that stood in the way of potty training success. From there, my work expanded as I helped families with everything from eating and sleeping to tantrums and transitions.
Now, more than a decade later, I’ve worked with hundreds of families, and yes—potty training expert is still a title I proudly own. Because while it might not sound glamorous, it represents something bigger: the moment I realized I could combine my passion, my training, and my role as a mom to help families build the peaceful homes they deserve.
