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Two Days Of Keynote Presentations Complimentary With Tradeshow Admission
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love a good celebration. Whether we’re celebrating a birthday, a holiday, a milestone, a promotion, or just getting through the yellow light before it turns red, count me in. Big or small, it feels good to celebrate. For some, celebrations are serious business. They spend countless hours planning and preparing huge events. They work tirelessly to pull off surprise parties (often for people who don’t like surprises). They stay up way past their bedtime to join the countdown on New Year’s Eve to celebrate the arrival of a New Year. Some people just love to celebrate, and they’re really good at it! The fact we like to celebrate in big ways does not amaze me. What amazes me is that the same people who make their plan weeks in advance for these big celebrations are the same ones who don’t make the time to celebrate regular victories in their everyday lives --- both personally and professionally. You see, I’m a firm believer we don’t do enough celebrating. In fact, I believe if we are going to celebrate the big stuff, then we should celebrate like there’s no tomorrow when we do things in our personal and professional life that deserve a great celebration! When we recognize and celebrate the small, everyday accomplishments in our lives, we not only enhance our own level of engagement, we help raise the level of engagement of those around us. I encourage you to find a method of celebration. For those who don’t celebrate much, I offer the following suggestions to get you started:
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Prepare For A Celebration If we can open a bottle of champagne to celebrate the arrival of a New Year, we can certainly open a bottle for a real accomplishment. So, here’s my challenge to you. To prepare for the celebrations to come, go to your local grocery store, buy a few bottles of cheap champagne and put them in your refrigerator (if you don’t drink alcohol, get yourself some sparkling water). When you experience your next victory this year, pop open a bottle of bubbly and celebrate your success. (And, if champagne isn’t your thing, pick a beverage of choice and have it ready to go).
Celebrate the small stuff “I’d celebrate somethin’ if there was somethin’ worth celebrating!” Those were the words shared with me by an audience member not long ago when I spoke on our need to celebrate. I took the opportunity to determine why this person didn’t think there was anything worth celebrating, and learned she thought it had to be something big. The great thing about celebration is we can celebrate anything, regardless of how small it is. In fact, I believe that once you start celebrating the small stuff, you’ll find more of it to celebrate. Don’t wait around for something big to happen. Look for the small stuff.
Allocate time to celebrate Friday night is Date Night for the Swindalls. If I’m not traveling, my wife and I make it a point to have a designated night to spend together. In addition to spending time talking and enjoying each other’s company, we take time to identify things to celebrate. It’s
easy to get wrapped up in the insanity of the world and miss the small things worth celebrating. We try to celebrate the small stuff when it happens, but if we miss it, we raise a glass on Date Night … which also happens to be Champagne Friday. Find a time on your calendar each week to identify the things in your life worth celebrating. As leaders, we all have a responsibility to build a culture of engagement for those around us. We also have a responsibility to consider our own personal engagement and the impact it has on those around us. While there are several ways to enhance your level of personal engagement, I encourage you to start by raising a glass in celebration of the good stuff in your life. We all know we could enjoy life more if we took some time to celebrate the successes. However, our success in life is not determined by what we know. Our success in life is determined by what we do. As you go through this week, make time to celebrate life!
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Clint is the president & CEO of Verbalocity, Inc., a personal development company with a focus on leadership enhancement. For information about how he can enhance employee engagement in your organization, please visit www.verbalocity.com, or contact him directly clint@verbalocity.com.
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