Enjoy Each Accomplishment

I am an avid skier. My house is in Beaver Creek, Colorado. Vail is only 10 minutes down the road so I typically spend several days every season skiing it. Vail is an amazing mountain, one of the largest in US. The one challenge I have with Vail (mostly due to its size and layout) is that I’m always trying to get somewhere else on the mountain. What I love so much about Beaver Creek is the flow of the mountain. It’s very easy to maneuver to different parts of the resort. The beauty is that I am able to relax and just focus on my skiing instead of constantly trying to get somewhere else.

In life I find myself always trying get somewhere. I set a goal, attain the goal and create another goal as soon as I get there. The problem I’ve had is that I wasn’t taking the time to enjoy each accomplishment.

When my oldest child was born, I came up with something I call the mental snapshot technique. I stop, take inventory of my current situation, and get present in the moment. In essence I am forcing myself to be in the now–appreciating the hugs I get from my little girl as I put her to bed, all those little things that make life so amazing. I want to soak them up and take that snapshot. If not, life just goes and before you know it, your children are grown and you realize you never took the time to appreciate how incredible the journey was.

I ask you, do you want to be the person facing your last days, wishing you had appreciated things?

If you’ve read my book or any of my blogs you know how critical goal setting is for me. But what good are having goals if you don’t celebrate and appreciate your success when you reach them? Take a mental snapshot, be in the moment, pat yourself on the back, or even give yourself a reward for reaching your goal.

The fact that you do this not only helps you to live a more fulfilling life, it also helps you to reach your future goals. When you make attainment a big deal, you give yourself something to look forward to. When you have something to look forward to, it keeps you on the path. The more you keep moving forward on the path the more success you experience. If happiness is a critical component of success, you must take those mental snapshots and force yourself to be in the moment.

So I invite you to start incorporating the mental snapshot technique into your life. Encourage the people around you to share in the experience. There is no downside and you will literally be living a more enjoyable life. As you do it, send me a message and let me know how it’s playing out and simply enjoy each accomplishment.