I find that when life gets complicated or stressful, I can get caught up in focusing on what I need to work on, where I need to grow, how I can prepare, what more I can be doing, and so on. I forget to celebrate the progress I have made, the new experiences I have had, and the challenges I have already faced. I can get so wrapped up in what’s not going well that I forget to acknowledge what is really going well - more specifically, what I am doing well.
There is always more we can be doing. But sometimes we just have to stop and smell the flowers. If we are constantly pushing ourselves to do more, be more, go further, we will never be satisfied; nothing will ever be enough. Plus it's not sustainable in the long run. If we stop to really acknowledge what we are doing well that will help motivate us — in a health way — to keep moving forward. Positive reinforcement has a greater, longer-lasting effect than negative reinforcement. Negative reinforcement is draining, especially when we are already working so hard to accomplish something.
Surrounding ourselves with people that see our greatness and help us celebrate it is an important part of the puzzle. But it is also important for us to see it for ourselves. For a long time, I looked to other people to acknowledge what I was doing well but I am finding that I need to do that myself. It is important, first and foremost, that I recognize what I am good at, where I am excelling, and what motivates me to keep going. We can’t look outside of ourselves for validation. Although recognition and praise is usually appreciated from a trusted friend or loved one, we cannot rely on them to be the only one to provide that for us. That dependency on others for their validation of who we are just drains their energy and causes us to live our lives based on other peoples opinions — positive or negative.
If we can start celebrating what we do well, we will be able to see the greatness that others see in us. And then, we can own that greatness and trust in ourselves more fully. If we are constantly tearing ourselves down, there is no way we can have a healthy relationship with ourselves or others.
So, let’s celebrate not only the big things in life but also the little things — the daily progress, accomplishments, and challenges we surmount. It can be as simple as congratulating yourself for keeping your calm when faced with a frustrating situation or finishing a personal project when there were several competing priorities for your time. Or it can be as big as throwing a party to celebrate a major accomplishment. The more we celebrate ourselves, the more we recognize our greatness. And it becomes a positive feedback loop- we do well, we celebrate, then we want to continue to do well and celebrate more! And really, what is there NOT to celebrate - we are alive and breathing and living in this beautiful world.
What accomplishments - big or small - can celebrate right now? Share below and plan something and what you are going to do to celebrate or simply to acknowledge your success.