I remember the day several years ago when my oldest son shared with me that he felt like at times, I was always on to the next “thing”. I was curious and so I asked more questions to uncover all he wanted to share.
At the heart of the matter was not my driven personality (as he is a lot like me), but rather a lack of pausing to really celebrate the small and big milestones for myself and for others.
“Celebrations mark the pinnacles of JOY in our lives…At these moments, our joy seems to overflow, and we have an irresistible urge to bring others together to join in our delight.” (page 246)
My son was right. I was always on to the next “thing” and that conversation got me thinking about all the lost short-term wins I had not celebrated with those in my sphere of influence at home and at work.
And, what defines a short-term win anyway?
Celebrating needed to be about growth and not just performance.
The ChangeMakers for Impact network is posting Wednesday Wins as a way to give people a place to post, be validated, be encouraged, be inspired, etc. to celebrate within a safe community. Celebrations cultivate JOY, promotes inclusiveness, while bringing people together to Collaborate & Connect.
“At the heart of celebration is a kind of mathematical paradox: the more we share joy, the more it grows. The implication of this is that we should manage joy in the exact opposite way that we manage money. We should spend it all, at every chance we get…Because the more generous we are with joy, the more we have for ourselves.” (page 270)
The more we celebrate and share, then the more the JOY spreads.
So I leave you with this…
What do you need to celebrate in your life?
How do you want to celebrate?
Who do you want to include?
“Celebration.” Joyful: the Surprising Power of Ordinary Things to Create Extraordinary Happiness, by Ingrid Fetell Lee, Little, Brown Spark, 2018, pp. 245 – 270.
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