Why Celebrate Success?
“Celebrate good times, come on!
It's a celebration.
Celebrate good times, come on!
Let's celebrate.”
It’s impossible to read these words without singing them to the catchy tune by Kool & The Gang. And how does this song make you feel? I bet it makes you feel good right? So, what is stopping us from celebrating our good times and our successes and feeling great about it?
I don’t do celebration very well. I tend to spend more time reflecting on what didn’t go so well and how I can do better next time, rather than celebrating when something does go well. I know I’m not the only one, many of us fall into this trap.
I find myself focusing on my long overwhelming list of what I’ve still got to do, rather than on what I’ve accomplished. I’m too eager to move on to the next thing. I shy away from the attention and prefer to promote others than myself (a common trait in female entrepreneurs apparently).
Earlier this month I was nominated for a National Business Award for inspiring other female entrepreneurs. It’s the first time I’ve been nominated for an award and I was honoured to be listed alongside so many other inspirational Mums in Business. I decided this might be the time to put into practice what I preach and take a moment to celebrate, but why?
What’s so important about celebrating success?
It inspires others
Celebration is infectious and those around you will want to share in your success. It can be a way to strengthen your network and connections, but it’s also the best way to encourage others to do the same.
It boosts our wellbeing
Success links to feeling good. Happy chemicals are released in the brain when we achieve something we’re proud of. It’s great for our emotional health.
It keeps us motivated
A lack of celebration devalues what we do. When we don’t make time to recognise our successes it can make us feel a little empty and even our performance may decrease over time. Celebrating has the opposite effect, it’s an incredibly positive thing to do. With this lift to our morale, our productivity and creativity will soar. We win attention and attract more success.
It builds our self belief
I hear people say that their success is purely down to luck, I doubt this very much, it’s just a way of downplaying your success. There will always be something YOU have made happen, something YOU have achieved by your hard work, your determination and your constant commitment to your goals – believe me that has nothing to do with luck. Telling yourself you haven’t anything to be proud of and don’t deserve the rewards is damaging. Celebrating reinforces that what you are doing is worthwhile.
Success mindset takes time to build and needs to be cultivated. When you notice and celebrate your successes you see yourself as someone who is successful rather than someone who’s trying to become successful, and this leads to greater success. Success attracts success.
How can you expect other to recognise your success if you don’t recognise it in yourself?
Some ideas to celebrate your success:
Stick handwritten post-it notes detailing your achievements on your wall, however small, as a constant reminder of your worth.
Reflect on three things you’ve achieved or felt grateful for that day every day. Ideally write them down.
Place your notes, cut outs, print outs – wherever you see your success and start filling a shoe box full of your achievements.
Regularly reflect. Open your shoe box or glance up at your wall to see exactly what you are achieving. If you ever feel a little empty remember to do this and you’ll soon pick yourself up.
And don’t forget to share your successes too. This encourages others to do the same. It’s the right thing to do.
What are you waiting for. Celebrate the wonderful you!
Thoughts by Kathryn Eade
Words by Amanda, Redwood Copy
Finally, I have some effective tools and techniques to help you master these steps and free your path ahead so you can proceed to succeed! To learn more about them feel free to get in touch and book in a free discovery call.
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