Appreciate The Journey!

Take a deep breath. Be in the moment of now. Feel those amazing vibrations of where you are right now compared to where you once were. Doesn't it feel so good, so relaxing, and so fulfilling knowing that you have come a long way? You have a whole journey ahead of you but don't forget to appreciate where you are in this very moment because if you don't, you're going to miss out on something so special!

"The key to realizing a dream is to focus not on success but significance, and then even the small steps and little victories along your path will take on greater meaning." — Oprah Winfrey

Celebrate The Small Wins

We sometimes get so caught up in big celebrations of our big successes but small wins are just as important! When we skip the celebration of a small win, it starts to take a toll on us because we may start to feel like we're not accomplishing anything because it wasn't a big win. We start to feel like we have a poor performance and now we feel guilty for it. When it comes to feeling proud about accomplishing something, it is easy to let the moment slip right through our fingertips.

I had to really take a step back and realize that I needed to start celebrating my small victories. I would be so hard on myself and felt as if I wasn't going hard enough when in actuality, I was in beast mode the whole time accomplishing step by step! Small wins enhances a person's motivation. Celebrating and acknowledging small progress, in any way, helps to boost self-confidence and can be put to use toward future successes. The next time you feel as if you haven't executed anything, think again because you have! Each day we accomplish a small win so celebrate that while pushing towards those big wins. Celebrating small wins is an important way to track incremental achievements and work toward much larger goals. Plus, it makes you feel good more often!

Five Tips On Achieving Success:

With all this in mind, it is the small steps we take that need to be acknowledged and appreciated for what they are. Motivation is a huge factor of whether or not we succeed and being able to reward ourselves and celebrate small wins is the key.

1. Break down large goals into smaller goals – You don’t want to focus on the bigger picture as tempting as that can be. Make sure you create small, achievable goals that will allow you to see your progress more clearly.

2. Reward yourself with achieving small goals – Think about what you enjoy the most and do this each time you complete a step. This cold be anything from treating yourself to your favourite coffee, chocolate or even a trip somewhere. Having something to look forward to trains the brain into creating motivation.

3. Don’t put pressure on yourself – Putting a deadline on your goals can lead to potential feelings of failure. Be relaxed with your time limits and this will increase your happiness and motivation.

4. Track your progress – Writing down or tracking your progress will remind you of how far you’ve come in achieving your goal. Sometimes we can give up because we are unaware of how close we are to success and forget how much we’ve done. Write down all the small wins – seeing them written down can even be a reward in itself!

5. Change your perspective – Sometimes when we focus too much on the end goal, it can seem too far away to get to. Try thinking of it, not as climbing a huge mountain, but descending one with perhaps a few nice restaurants (rewards) to stop off at and relax on the way down – this way you can visualise getting there a lot easier!

These five tips came from Lifehack.org. (Click link to read the full article — How To Celebrate Small Wins To Achieve Big Goals)

Appreciate How Far You've Come

Recognize the full worth of how far you've come. We all have been in a place in our lives that we couldn't wait to get free from. For me, it was when I hit rock bottom. I lost my grandmother, car was about to get repossessed (yes, the repo man was on the way to my house a that very moment when I got the call), I didn't have a job for a few months so bills were backed up! It felt as if everything was falling apart right before my eyes. It was the absolute hardest time of my life but I kept going! I knew this was what my rock bottom was and I vowed to myself that I wouldn't allow myself to ever go back through this. Everyday got a tad bit better and things were slowly coming together. I still wasn't where I wanted to be but I was celebrating the fact that things were looking up finally! I have come an extremely long way and I have learned that no matter how much negativity I feel on my journey, I will not let that bring me down anymore because I could've been back in the same position I was in before. Appreciating it gives you the power, drive, and the energy to keep on.

Don't let those big wins overcrowd your mind. You are making progress every time you work towards your goals, dreams, aspirations and so on. Look back over your life and admire how far you've come. Even if it was a year ago, three years ago, ten years ago .. it doesn't matter how far back. The only thing that matters is that you are not in that place anymore! You have risen!

Video Message on Appreciating Your Journey — Jennifer Sumter