Celebration Matters

Written by Kendall Bergman

Have you seen the movie Love Actually? Do you remember that scene where Carl and Sarah finally…FINALLY…kiss? Do you remember what Sarah does right after that first kiss? She looks at Carl and asks him to hold on a moment. She walks around the corner and quietly jumps up and down…shaking her arms and dancing her feet…steeped in joy. In that instant, she marks the moment and celebrates.

How many times have you experienced wins, high points, victories…no matter how big or small…without giving them a second thought? You set out to accomplish a goal, meet a deadline, cross something off your bucket list, make a change…you succeed and before you can take a new breath you are moving on to complete the next thing on your list. 

This is the cycle many of us find ourselves living in. It’s like the shampoo bottle says: “lather, rinse, repeat”. And we automatically oblige. We set out to achieve, we succeed and we immediately move on to the next achievement. This is a stressful, exhausting and unsustainable way to live. We lather, rinse and repeat ourselves into oblivion.

I’m here to tell you I suffer from this. I grew up with a loving father who excelled in so many ways. That said, celebrating was not his strong suit. He grew up believing hard work was the point to most of life. My observations told me the following about him: Wake up early, so you can get to work…work hard for 10-12 hours, come home and eat dinner. Then shortly thereafter hurry up and go to bed, so you can wake up early and start all over again. Lather, rinse and repeat.

Why do we fail to pause and take a beat, reflect on what we just finished and celebrate? 

Are we too busy? Does that seem too frivolous and silly? Are we afraid and feeling vulnerable? I’m here to tell you, it’s probably scary and vulnerable to mark and celebrate these moments and it probably seems too frivolous and silly, but it’s NOT! It’s life-giving. 

You did that thing! Share it with your trusted loved ones and team members. I’m not talking about bragging or arrogance here. I’m suggesting that when one of us wins and shares it with their people, everyone gets to partake in that win. And that shared win can shift individual and group perspectives. What seemed impossible 10 minutes ago, might just be possible!

See how celebration might matter in your life. And not merely celebrating for the sake of going to happy hour and popping open a bottle of Prosecco. This can be a fun way to mark the win. But, dig a little deeper…if you dare. Be curious about why you don’t acknowledge the accomplishment. Ponder what kills celebration. Experiment with simple ways to mark the victories in life. Now listen…I can’t make any guarantees that Carl is going to kiss you. Nonetheless, I am confident that exercising your celebration muscle will add a bit of spark and vigor to your life!

No matter the significance or size of the win, celebratory recognition of the thing matters. It can help inspire and fuel the next goal. As I’ve mentioned in previous blogs, you don’t have to go it alone. Reach out to me at hello@thediscoverywell.com to schedule a complimentary discovery session to explore how we might work together. I’m cheering you on in the meantime!

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Unexpected Gifts

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Why Forgiveness Matters