Five Good Reasons to Celebrate More Often

Celebration may be the most underutilized tool in your box. Some view celebration as soft or slacking off – like we aren’t really doing anything. Nothing could be further from the truth. Celebration is a pivotal stage in the productivity process because it allows us to commemorate all the good that we do.

Unlike indigenous cultures, in the western world, we have forgotten many of our traditions, ceremonies and celebrations especially around the work that we do. In the name of progress, our culture has lessened rejoicing over everyday occurrences like sunrises and important seasonal events like harvest time. We need to remember that when the crops are safely in, it’s time to dance and make merry.

In an earlier post, Work Life Happiness – Stake Your Claim Now, I illustrated the Authentic Cycle of Probability.

Cycle of Authentic Probability

Look where celebration falls – right after gratitude and just before completion. That’s an extremely powerful stage of the cycle that should not be overlooked.

Gratitude is the causative energy of appreciation that blesses us with ease and greater flow. Celebration is self-acknowledgment and recognition for successfully completing every small step. Completion is the triumphant achievement of our objective and our signal to proceed forward to the freshness of discovery. Here are five good reasons to celebrate more often.

  1. Celebration helps us stay in the present where our power is. By celebrating the completion of every small step, we leverage the powerful energies of gratitude and momentum. Thomas Edison taught us that even each mistake along the way is cause for celebration. Life is all about the journey, and that means that every step, as well as reaching our destination, is part of our journey. Celebrating at every juncture is recognition of a life well lived and well worked.
  2. Celebration builds self-respect. Others treat us according to how we treat ourselves. It’s important to hold yourself in high regard. Perhaps, like me, your early caregivers did not celebrate your presence and special glow. Celebration overwrites this limited conditioning and tips the balance of your internal programming so that it’s more natural to think well of yourself.
  3. Celebration feeds our basic human need for self-love and self-acceptance. Celebration is emotional nourishment. Yet sometimes we simply don’t feel like celebrating because we’ve fallen into the habit of harshly judging ourselves. When this happens, there is a negative feeling remaining in our bodies from a challenging event in our past. A very powerful tool to remove the feeling so you feel like celebrating once more is Emotional Freedom Technique. There are many practitioners with instructional videos available online. I like this one on self-acceptance: [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tFn8tX5xD4s&hl=en]
  4. Celebration is positive magnification. What we focus on expands. When we downplay or skip celebration, we are telling ourselves that we haven’t done enough to be proud of ourselves – so our self-doubt is what expands. The proliferation of productivity blogs on the web tells me that lots of folks don’t follow-through frequently enough to feel good about it. Want to complete more projects with less procrastination and guilt? Then do not skip this powerful stage of the process. Celebrate more often and stay on it longer. Honor your completions, both big and small, in celebration so that you expand more of what you want in your life.
  5. Shameless self-promotion and marketing is easier with celebration. We’ve got to toot our own horns in this crowded world so the right folks will hear us and gather round. “If you’re embarrassed about what you do well, you won’t be very attractive.” – Thomas J. Leonard In 1998, way before The Secret, Leonard in his groundbreaking book, The Portable Coach, shared his 28 Laws of Attraction. In number 7, Market Your Talents Shamelessly; he shares a brilliant distinction: Confidence vs. Arrogance. “Confidence is knowing exactly what you do well and don’t do well; arrogance is a way to cover up what you don’t do well.”Confidently celebrate and flaunt your bad ass self and marketing gets easier because more people will seek you out. Fear not, the phone will ring. The world needs your edge to be complete. The same people who told you not to toot your own horn also told you to be seen and not heard. They were dead wrong, both times.

Sometimes we lament our lack of progress and go on fruitless searches for the answer. But often what’s missing is as simple as a little jig of recognition or bursting out in spontaneous song.
Your very being is enough reason to celebrate. Select a project or any progress that makes you feel good and join Kool and the Gang in Celebration of your achievement![youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZmOQyyezwCQ&hl=en]

What do you think? Are you celebrating enough? What have you accomplished recently that is reason to celebrate? What have you passed over without giving it its due recognition?

If you truly want something to celebrate right now then schedule a complimentary session with me and we will expand your greatest business asset.

Comments

  1. Andrea Hess|Empowered Soul says

    Great post, Tom! We’re not always taught to celebrate our own successes, and it truly is such a great practice to take ownership of our own accomplishments.

    I was laughing at your paragraph about bursting into song – I was on such a high today that I actually dug out a book of opera arias and let loose with some Puccini. I may have totally traumatized my cat, but it really was all about celebration! 🙂

    Blessings,
    Andrea

  2. Thanks, Tom – this was a great way for me to start the day!

    We had a break in on Saturday while we were away for the weekend – thanks to a responsive neighbour who scared off the two teenage boys with a golf club (well, we do live in Scotland, after all – what else would one use as a “weapon”?!) nothing was taken and we just have a window to replace. We’ve decided to have a party to celebrate all the good that we saw during the whole process – we always knew we shared the block with great people, but we were still blown away by how fantastic everyone was, from the observant person who spotted the boys acting suspiciously to the one who investigated and chased them off to the one who spent until 11pm liaising with the police and emergency glaziers till we got home.

  3. innerarchitect says

    Tom,

    Very interesting-sort of a sweets are just as good for you as the main course!

    Affirmations although underutilized by most, are a great way to solidify your concentration. For a refresher on affirmations or how to validate your truth before it happens: http://innerarchitect.wordpress.com/2008/04/23/affirm-your-new-reality-affirmations-5-tools-to-dismantle-your-doubt/

    Dismantle your doubt and enjoy life like Tom is showing everyone.

    dean

  4. Great article, Tom. I’d add another: Celebration is fun and so lightens us up a bit, which can lead to the “detachment” so often mentioned in LOA articles.

    “Confidently celebrate and flaunt your bad ass self and marketing gets easier because more people will seek you out. Fear not, the phone will ring. The world needs your edge to be complete.” This really made me stop and think. Whilst I’m good at celebrating being me (and flaunting myself…), I’m not so good at shameless self-promotion when it comes to selling my wares. Maybe I don’t need to be shameless; just being myself should get me “known”.

    Cheers,
    Louise

  5. This my favorite article you’ve written Tom. I think it’s absolutely necessary that we celebrate our success. I think sometimes we have a tendency to keep looking to the future, think “what’s next?”

    When we do this we forget to celebrate our achievements and give us further inspiration in the future.

    I actually wrote an article about the importance of celebrating success, if you’d like you can check it out here:

    http://jonathanmead.com/2008/03/06/celebrating-success/

    Thanks for this wonderful article!

    -Jonathan

  6. Thanks for another great post.

    Nice use of multi media with a great message.

    Celebrate good times Come on! …. It’s a celebration …

    That you found Kool and the Gang to demonstrate you point makes me giggle.

    In Balance,

    Shann

  7. Kenneth King says

    You make an excellent point Tom. Gratitude has been popular for a long time in the world of self development and spirituality, but some still think celebration to be too self centered and somehow less worthy. You have pointed out rather eloquently that it is not. Thanks!

  8. Andrea ownership of our achievements through celebration is a very sound way of putting it. Let the cat deal with it. In fact I’d love to watch you belt out some Puccini in your next YouTube video!

    Mags absolutely we all have multiple reasons to celebrate. I love the connection and support that shines through in your story.

    Innerarchitect welcome and thanks for sharing that link to your blog so shamelessly. 🙂 I read it and you are on the money.

    Louise I like what you said about lightening up and how that helps us detach from the outcomes Thank you. As for authenticity and shameless self-promotion, as long as you are proud enough to shut from the roof tops while holding nothing back just being yourself ought to work.

    Jonathan I checked out your link and posted a comment there. Good stuff. It’s a pleasure to meet a fellow celebrator. Let’s rejoice!

    Shann it’s a pleasure to make you giggle. Yes urge all those grumps on to celebrate!

  9. Evelyn Lim | Attraction Mind Map says

    Great post, Tom. I definitely welcome the idea of celebrating more!

    Thanks for also sharing the difference between confidence and arrogance. I’m going to confidently strut off from now on…LOL!!

    To more parties,
    Evelyn

  10. Tom,

    I loved this because, Tom, you know that this is my weak spot. My mantra is “How”? How do i do it? This is my strength with my clients but my own Achilles heal.
    A line in Robert Frost’s poem “Mending Wall” reads: “something there is that doesn’t love a wall.” That line came to mind but a bit changed: “something there is that doesn’t love the self.”

    It seems that celebrating is about self-love, which is foundational to good relationships which are vital to successful personal and business life and that ‘self-loving’ looks like gets confused with ego-serving but it’s not, it is a necessary component for delightful life..and work (smiling).

    Here’s another quote that I find amazing:

    “goodness can’t be accomplished by TRYING to be good, but by enjoying the goodness that is already within you” (author unknown, I think it’s Eckart Tolle)

    OK, so how does everyone ‘celebrate’ themselves and their goodness? Here’s my post about 13 ways to Celebrate More Often. I could only come up with 8 — can anyone help me out?

    http://fawnachang.wordpress.com/2008/04/25/13-ways-to-celebrate-more-often/

  11. Kenneth you make a fine point. There is nothing self-centered about being all that you are and letting others know about it.

    Evelyn – strut on! That’s a wonderful picture and mantra.

    Fawn I love the Tolle point. Celebration is recognizing the goodness within us and rejoicing because of it.

  12. Exactly – when I was young around 12-14 years, my Mom-Dad celebrates my birthday like a blast but as time passing yesterday I planned to celebrate 25th marriage anniversary of my parents , then they refused because they were Super Busy :-/ (Confused) Why everyone is getting Workaholic ?

    But anyways – I manged to make small Surprise get together for them & party rocked and all felt no-stress & was enjoying things.

  13. Tom, I really find that celebration is a new one for me and I am interested which is good because I am in the momentum gratitude phase so I am excited to enter this next.. before completion 😉
    yay!

    Look where celebration falls – right after gratitude and just before completion. That’s an extremely powerful stage of the cycle that should not be overlooked.

    sadly, I did overlook this before. I had to emotionally survive when I was preparing to celebrate.. and so with such an unplanned shift I was instantly suppressed /so it makes sense how now it is coming full-circle and I am being given that chance again… and to share it with the world 😉

    I am learning to live wholeheartedly again and speak openly from that same wound which once paralyzed me. I love this line you shared:
    1. Celebration helps us stay in the present where our power is.
    it makes me feel so strong to repeat this as an affirmation

    thank you,
    Jenn
    .-= Jenn´s last blog ..Seated Next to My Joy: A New Position =-.

  14. Susann Edmonds says

    Great article! I look up constantly how others celebrate. I view celebrating ( beautiful memories ) like the bricks in a wall. You want a lot of bricks with just a little mortar. That creates a strong wall. That’s how I’ve built my life. I will celebrate almost anything! It usually involves great food, great wine, with people that I love! I hope you don’t mind if I copy this to my Facebook page! You hit it all! My best to you and the people you love!

  15. Jane Grofski says

    Just what I needed to hear today. I had a massive block around celebration due to extensive childhood trauma. This piece really broke open the heart of the issue and literally allowed to begin to enjoy celebrating my very life and life force unconditionally, silencing the inner critic. Thank you for this breakthrough piece of wisdom and encouragement.

    • Tom Volkar says

      Jane recognizing the block and its origin are huge steps to releasing it and celebrating without effort. Well done!

Trackbacks

  1. […] took it as a personal challenge to write this post.  As I read an article by a friend of mine: “Five Good Reasons to Celebrate More Often.”   I kept thinking, “Yes, Tom, you are so right, yes, I need to do that, yes, but ‘how’?  […]

  2. […] Delightful Work For those in active pursuit of work life happiness « Five Good Reasons to Celebrate More Often […]

  3. […] were always celebrating. This cool article about celebrating was written by Tom Volkar at Delightful Work. We need to celebrate our wins and flops. Yes our […]

  4. […] by Tom Volkar at 7:29 am under Life Works, Uncategorized In my last post I wrote about celebration. Now I’d like to celebrate a success story of one of the people I coach. About a year ago, Bill […]

  5. […] forward 30 days, how will I feel having successfully followed through to completion? Write out a celebratory script in full five-sense detail. If you aren’t really fired up on day one, it likely doesn’t […]

  6. […] of reasons why celebrating more often is important, even if you aren’t working on a habit. (Tom Volker has an excellent post on why we should celebrate more. This one really struck a chord with me: […]

  7. Celebrate Good Times, Come On **It’s The Declaration of You Bloglovin’ Tour** | Joyful Roots - Magical Art and Design by Kimberly Kling says:

    […] & life coach, Tom Volkar, explains that there are at least five good reasons we should celebrate more often. Indigenous cultures celebrate all the time with gatherings and rituals. They even celebrate every […]

Leave a Reply to Celebrate Good Times, Come On **It’s The Declaration of You Bloglovin’ Tour** | Joyful Roots - Magical Art and Design by Kimberly Kling Cancel reply

*