What are you celebrating?

Life is filled with big milestone events. Births, graduations, weddings etc. all are marked with large

celebrations recognizing these major events. We hold these celebrations to mark the work put in along

the way or to mark what is a major, exciting and life changing event. To get to these moments, there

are many small victories along the way that just happen. What if you took the time to celebrate those

other moments?

I’ve had times with my clients where after they described a step forward, I asked “How will you

celebrate that moment?” For some there is a long pause followed by “Wow, I haven’t thought about

that!” Many of us have our big goals. In keeping focus on those big goals- i.e. a promotion, finishing up

a big project, losing weight, writing a book, etc., it is normal to lose sight of the every day baby steps it

takes to get to those goals. Nevertheless, you cannot accomplish the big goals without having many

small victories along the way. These build skills, grow your experience, fertilize your resilience. If you

don’t take time to recognize those steps, when you have set backs, they may take you off your path and

the frustration that sets in could lead to you abandoning that goal.

A physical therapist once told me “remember, healing is not linear.” Neither is growth. As you move

towards a big goal, you are going to have moments that make the goal not seem accomplishable. You

may get writers block, passed up for a job or promotion, or give up on that diet and exercise plan you

had. To work through these moments, it helps to focus on what you did accomplish. Sometimes just

getting out of bed is a huge step forward worth acknowledging. This is where working in moments to

pat yourself on your back and celebrate a “little victory” is so important.

Celebrating shifts your mindset. As you take a moment to acknowledge a small step forward- going to

the gym and doing a light workout when don’t feel like going-you shift the focus to what you did and

take it away from what you didn’t. Imaging instead of saying “I didn’t get the job I interviewed for” you

instead celebrate the fact that you were chosen for the interview and had the opportunity to put your

best foot forward? You create an entirely new mindset that focuses on the what you can do and did as

opposed to what you cannot and didn’t. This is a powerful shift reinforcing your superpowers.

So how do you celebrate? It doesn’t have to be exotic- maybe a glass of your favorite adult beverage,

taking the night off and binging your favorite program, going for a walk, calling a friend, taking a long

bath, etc. All of these moments create an opportunity for you to take a deep breath, reset your mind

and give yourself permission to acknowledge what you did.

The next time you have a small victory, ask yourself “how will I celebrate?” Make a plan and follow

through. Then pay attention to what it does for your mindset and motivation as you work towards your

big goal.