Have you accomplished a victory recently? Maybe you bought a house, got a new job, got married, lots the weight you wanted to lose, got accepted into a college program or finished a college program, cleaned your house or got through a court case or jury duty. I’m sure it feels awesome to have accomplished something like this that mattered to you and you probably worked hard for a long time to get to victory. All of those victories should be celebrated because you’ve accomplished something that not only do other people not do but you completed something you wanted to do.
I was thinking about this because of some conversations I’ve had with some clients recently. These clients are really focused on getting to these types of victories, and I have faith that together we’ll get there. But something they don’t all take into account is that once you accomplish what you set out to accomplish, yes you should celebrate, but that’s not the end of the story. Because once you buy a house you have to take care of that house. Once you lose weight you have to keep it off. Once you clean your house you have to not only keep it relatively tidy but keep cleaning it because even if you’re tidy things get dusty and dirty. And once you finish a college program you have to do something with the skills you’ve learned.
I’m not trying to rain on any parades here, we should work towards victories and dream big. But you can’t be so focused on the victory or the goal or the destination that you don’t think about what comes next. Because if you think about what comes next that might change or alter your victory plans, maybe having you end up somewhere slightly different or just having a more realistic understanding of the big picture of life that exists in addition to, surrounding, regardless of and is affected by your victory. It’s one of the reasons I don’t encourage or suggest working towards perfection: because there’s so much more to life than whatever tiny aspect or moment you’re trying to perfect. So go ahead and work on those victories, but don’t forget to keep an eye on what comes next. It will help reduce disappointment and frustration and maybe even make your victory more satisfying.
Laura Dickey 