Celebrating Small Wins (And Why we Must?)

In the picture above, both the persons (on the left and right) are striving for their respective goals. The person on left takes small steps while celebrating his small wins, while the person on the right is continuously worried about his big win while carrying the baggage of his efforts and expectations. In other words, instead of forcing a big win, the person on left believes in creating small wins and celebrating them while taking little steps forward.

Just like them, everyone expects to win big, to achieve more. They invest all their time and efforts while working rigorously for that big achievement which they want or dreamt of. And amidst this journey of hard work, dedication, and perseverance, sometimes we forget to reward ourselves for all our efforts because we are overly concerned about that particular big achievement of ours. And so instead of appreciating those little efforts, we neglect them more. This article talks about the power of celebrating such small wins or progress that we make in our day-to-day life.

What does Small Win mean?

We define Small wins as the controllable opportunities and our daily choices or decisions that produce visible results. In other words, these are like miniature experiments that facilitate our learning while uncovering both resources and barriers that were invisible before.

And you know what’s a small win for me? Activities like ticking off my to-do list one by one, finishing chapters from my favorite book, scheduling this blog post on time without rushing over the deadlines, decluttering my table and stuff and the list is vast. Moreover here you can read a list of more than a hundred things that you can appreciate and celebrate.

7 Powerful Reasons to celebrate small wins

It’s too easy to be your own greatest critic but it’s too hard to be your own greatest motivator.

Instead of starting big for that big project of yours and then flaring out with nothing to show for it other than your time and energy wasted, it is essential to start small and celebrate small so that:

1. It can help you build a momentum.

Because a small and concrete win creates momentum and affirms your faith in your further success. And once you gain that drive that is needed, you can use that momentum to work towards the next win, and the next one, and so on until you have your required breakthrough. You will notice that when you do this, your progress will have become so frictionless and effortless that the breakthrough will seem like an overnight success. Those small wins you’re getting will keep you headed in the right direction. Up, forward and on to the next task on the path to completing your goal.

2. To stop procrastination.

Small wins allow you to do your work sincerely avoiding your procrastinating thoughts and actions. Because now you are more motivated to complete rather than procrastinate.

3. Small wins provide a ticket for more positive behavior.

Achievement and recognition for that achievement spark more positivity inside you. You are motivated to continue doing good until, eventually, doing good becomes natural and effortless for you.

4. It gives you a reason to feel happy and motivated.

This attitude of gratitude will make you feel WOW about yourself. Moreover, it will give you an energy boost and motivation to keep up the good work. It will make a big difference in your life and add joy to your days.

5. It increases your energy.

Taking the wins of completing each step on your way to your goal gives you great energy and forward motion for the rest of your journey.

6. It increases your self-esteem and confidence.

As human beings, we crave appreciation. (Here’s why). We need to be affirmed and believed in what we do. We always expect recognition for the things that we do. And this recognition we get from ourselves when we start celebrating such small wins of ours. Our self-esteem and confidence then take a big leap forward.

7. Small steps eventually lead to big changes.

It’s those little and daily efforts that create a big change. This is what that helps you see that although you may not have reached your ultimate goal yet, you are on your way.

How to celebrate small wins?

Now that we know the reasons to celebrate small wins, it’s time to answer the question of “How”. And the answer lies in starting small, encouraging progress, and then rewarding yourself finally. Here are a few techniques that may help.

1. Focus on your progress; Ask Yourself, “What is the smallest amount of progress that you can make in the task you are trying to get done?” Work on yourself, on your strengths, and keep strengthening them afterward.

2. Reward your progress (no matter how small it is); When you start small and reward progress, you end up achieving more than when you have actually set those big goals. As a result of which, this positive reinforcement allows you to reap more enjoyment and satisfaction out of the process.

3. Take a moment to be grateful for what you accomplished yesterday and what you are going to accomplish today.

4. Use one evening a week, for your self-care and to celebrate yourself. Go to bed feeling wonderful about yourself. Do whatever makes you feel good thus helping you add significance to your small wins.

SUMMARY

We notice our small mistakes always but we forget to notice our small wins. We forget the fact that the small wins are just as important as the big wins. So now is the only and best time than ever to cherish the small moments and take pride in the little wins that make each day worthwhile. You are awesome and your every little win calls for a celebration.

Cheers!