How To Celebrate Success For Maximum Impact

Do you celebrate success when you achieve it in your business or your life? Or does accomplishing something usually just become another check off the old to do list and then on to the next thing?

Unfortunately the latter is usually the way it goes for far too many business owners. There is just so much to do and so many things on that never ending to do list that feel urgent.

So, even when huge successes are achieved you quickly put them behind you and move on to the next thing because with every completed item there always seems to be several new things coming onto the list.

If that sounds like you then I think you are missing an incredibly valuable step to repeatedly experiencing the success you want.

Why Celebrate Success?

Whether it’s a small or huge success accomplished I believe there is tremendous value when you celebrate success. 

1. Keep a positive mindset

All successes, even the smallest ones, deserve to be celebrated because they help set the positive mindset for reasons 2 and 3. In staying focused on the to do list and all that remains, you risk instilling stress, anger, worry, and fear.

Celebrating, even the small things, turns your focus towards the positive of the accomplishment. More and more positives will gradually crush the negativity. It will raise your energy, motivation, and inspiration to take that next step.

2. Set yourself up for repeated success

If your success was finally overcoming some barrier to get something done or start some momentum, then taking time to celebrate success here is vital in breaking free of that limiting habit or belief that has held you back. Do so and you can repeat this new, positive step over and over. You’ll own it and it can now serve you forever.

For example a client recently summoned the courage to reach out directly to a client of theirs to discuss diminishing referrals. A step that was outside of their comfort zone yet causing them considerable stress with the lowering referrals and income. Just pickling up the phone and making the call was a huge success. The subsequent result of identifying a simple solution that led to returned referrals and a stronger relationship is a success on another level.

Celebrating on both accounts drilled home the value of overcoming that fear and the positive results that can happen again and again when done.

3. Progress

Sometimes the length of your list or the scope of what you are working on may seem beyond reach keeping your negative focus firmly at the forefront. Taking baby steps will lead to bigger steps and those lead to massive leaps forward. When you celebrate success in each step along the way it keeps the positive mindset I mention in reason 1.

For example when I was training for my first marathon I had no idea of what it took to actually run one. When I focused only on the end goal it often overwhelmed me. It even knocked my off track with my training at times.

When I reframed my vision to celebrate milestones along the way (hitting 5K, 10K, 21.1K) and overcoming other barriers (like going out for a 3+ hour run on a miserable rainy/snowy day) it was a game changer. My energy shot up, my joy of the process increased, and my training excelled. All led to an amazing experience in the race and achieving what I wanted to.

Celebrating my progress success steps was powerful!

So, now you’ve got your why all set. Next is HOW! Here are 3 key components on how to celebrate success.

How To Celebrate Success

1. Stop and acknowledge it

If you do not stop and acknowledge it in the moment soon after you do it you’ll habitually move onto the next thing right away and it will be lost… chalked up as just another check off the to do list. 

Here you also need to listen to your inner voice when it tries to diminish the importance of this success; and it will! 

You don’t necessarily need to celebrate in the moment, as the timing may not work, but DO give yourself a nice pat on the back and say “this I will celebrate further!”.

2. Choose how to celebrate carefully

Many people will choose to celebrate with something they do often anyway. Do that and you minimize the impact you can create. So if you often go to the coffee shop for a latte then that is not a good way to celebrate. No real value here.

Choose something special and unique. Something you would not normally do. It does not have to be something elaborate or expensive either. Just something meaningful to you.

For smaller successes it can be simpler but when you achieve a huge success to you make a big deal about it. Share that celebration with someone else if you want.

For simpler and smaller things the list is endless. Be creative. For bigger celebrations… maybe it’s a weekend away, a new pair of runners, a new laptop, a massage. Again the options are really endless.

Personally I like to avoid many food rewards as they can reinforce unhealthy habits, especially of a goal is a healthier lifestyle and the reward is something unhealthy as a treat.

In the end it’s up to you what you choose. As Nike would say… just do it!

3. Affirm your vision and your path forward

After you have celebrated take one additional step and reconnect with the over vision you have for your business and your life. Affirm how the success you achieved moves you further along the path of living your ideal life with the thriving business of your dreams.

Knowing why to celebrate success will get you to actually do it. Do it in a conscious way to maximize the impact will drive home the value and tee you up to repeating that success in the same way and in many other ways.

I’d love to hear of your celebrations. What success you experienced and how you celebrated. Feel free to comment below. You may just inspire another reader to take a step, suceed, and celebrate in their own way.