Recently I’ve been putting in more of an effort about being intentional about celebrating the successes and victories that happen throughout my day. We all know that it is pretty easy to think about our failures and the negative aspects of our life. If you would ask me at the end of a day or week or year what my shortcoming and failures were, I could rattle off quite a number. I could easily tell you the areas that I want and/or need to develop and grow in. I can very easily talk about my problem areas and weaknesses, but if someone would come and ask me what my successes were or the good things that I’ve been able to do or accomplish, well…that’s just…awkward. That’s a little hard to talk about.
Not only it is hard to talk about, but it’s hard to find something to talk about.
Me? Successful? Good?
It’s not pride to realize that you’ve done something good, something right. It’s not pride to celebrate the successes and victories that you have. I think we need to do a lot more of it, actually.
Think about it…if we decided to dwell on the positive and successful aspects of our life and character, we will live from that, as opposed to dwelling on the negative and weak aspects of our life and character and living from that. You can do the exact same things in life (i.e. parent your kids, lead your business, learn something new, etc.) but if you do them from a place of success, it changes how you do them.
For example, I enjoy cooking. I’m not super good at it and definitely have my hit-and-miss tendencies when it comes to making something new or even something I’ve done for years (i.e. omelets). But I can either make food from a place of failure (i’m a bad cook trying to make good food) or I can cook from a place of success (i’m a good cook that sometimes makes bad food). If I cook from failure, I feel badly about myself the whole time I’m in the process. But if I cook from success, I can enjoy the time spent in the kitchen and also not take my mistakes so seriously when I do make them.
This principle can also apply in relationships, such as “I’m a bad wife/friend/leader trying to be a good one,” or “I’m a good wife/friend/leader that makes mistakes.”
If I approach a task or a relationship from a place of success with a chance of failure, it automatically gives me a boost in the right direction. If I approach something from a place of failure with a chance of success, it automatically gives me a shove in the wrong direction.
We all make mistakes. But the mistakes do not define you, and if we let them, we become only a shadow of all that we are meant to be.
What about you: do you find it easy to let mistakes define you? What areas do you want to focus on celebrating your successes?
I’d love to hear your thoughts!
Mmm. Good thought food.