How to Make Your Accomplishments Count

What do you do after you finish a project or accomplish a goal? Do you take time to celebrate or do you simply move on to the next goal?

Perhaps you consider yourself a high-achieving perfectionistic type who enjoys the satisfaction of getting things done. Like many of my clients, you may be prone to simply moving on to the next goal without reflecting and celebrating your achievement. My clients describe the tendency to move the goalpost to something more impressive and to downplay what they experienced so it doesn’t “really count.” This does not allow them to receive the benefits of reaching their goals.

In this post, I’ll discuss the importance of savoring your accomplishments and some strategies to help you practice the art of savoring.

First, what do I mean by savoring?

The Definition of Savoring and the Benefits of Savoring

Definitions of savoring include:

to have experience of

to taste or smell with pleasure

to delight in

Synonyms include: Relish, Enjoy, Flavor

Imagine how much richer your experiences could be if they were to take on these qualities!

We often associate “savoring” with experiences of eating and drinking. It describes an ideal way to enjoy your meals. Fewer office workers in the U.S. compared to people in other countries take lunch breaks. Most tend to multi-task through meals. This lack of savoring even the simple act of eating is evidence of a larger problem we have with not savoring other aspects of our lives. In a culture that prioritizes getting things done most efficiently, it makes sense that after accomplishing a goal, you’d just move on to the next activity without much thought.

There are negative consequences when you continue to move mindlessly to the next goal without acknowledging your accomplishments, or downplaying your accomplishments including:

• Burning out from moving too quickly without necessary rest and recovery
• Lacking of fulfillment and positive feelings associated with reaching your goals
• Feeling a false sense you’re not ever getting enough things done

Benefits of Savoring Your Accomplishments

1. Motivation boost: Recognizing your accomplishments, no matter how small, provides a sense of achievement and motivates you to continue pursuing your goals.
2. Increased self-confidence: Celebrating your successes improves your self-confidence and self-efficacy. Self-efficacy is the belief that you are capable of achieving what you set your mind to. Self-efficacy and confidence help you set future goals and take bigger risks.
3. Positive reinforcement: Taking time to savor the progress you made reinforces the small habits and strategies that led to your success, making it more likely that you will repeat them in the future.
4. Celebration and enjoyment: Savoring your accomplishments provides a sense of fulfillment and can be a rewarding experience in itself, making the process of goal attainment more enjoyable and meaningful.

Friends hugging and looking at sunrise

Source: Helena Lopes/Unsplash

Strategies to Help You Savor your Accomplishments

1. Reflect on your accomplishments: Reflecting on your successes and the process of reaching your goals will help you adjust your goal-setting and goal-achievement strategies for better results in the future. What did this experience teach you about your strengths, weaknesses, and areas for improvement? What did you enjoy most about this activity? Think back to the small details of what you loved the most about this experience.
2. Share your successes with others: You can inspire others to engage in similar activities. Supportive people in your life are eager to celebrate with you through words and actions.
3. Reward yourself: The fact that you accomplished something deserves a reward. That can take shape in something as small as your favorite drink to a weekend getaway. This is a way to tell yourself through words and actions that what you did matters and deserves positive attention.
4. Rest and Recover: It takes physical and mental effort to go through the process of accomplishing a goal. Make sure to give yourself a break and time to rest and recover from whatever you just did. This will help reduce the chances of burnout and fatigue.

Conclusion

It is not vain or foolish to celebrate and savor your wins, no matter how small. It is an act of self-care to pause and acknowledge your accomplishments. You have so much to gain by taking a minute to recognize and reflect on the effort it took to get to where you are. This will lead to more gratitude and hope for what else is possible.

Ask yourself when was the last time you paused after you finished an activity and gave yourself the satisfaction you deserved. Even taking a minute to pause and acknowledge, “I did that!” can lead to the benefits in your mental and emotional well-being.