Savoring Success
The world around us is often run at breakneck speed, and some of us consider ourselves lucky to have a moment to breathe! There is a huge benefit in how you spend those ‘breath-catching’ moments, however. Frequently those moments are filled with thoughts of what you still have to do, when they should be spent reflecting on what you’ve already done. You can easily build strength, stamina, motivation, and drive simply by recalling your accomplishments, and how that success felt.
Savoring is all about enjoying, even relishing, the past moments with great appreciation, present moments of enjoyment, and even future golden moments by anticipating them. Many people see that word and imagine having a meal and eating is slowly to savor the flavor, so to speak. Truth is, savoring every moment, including a good meal, is an incredible psychological tool to boost positivity and motivation.
It strengthens in three ways: it prolongs enjoyable moments; it can act as a vaccination that protects you psychologically over long periods of time; and it intensifies positive experiences. So turn up the volume of your good-mood by basking in the enjoyment of your success! Enhance it further by creating set-points for savoring later.
‘Savory-Set-Points’ are images, feelings, sensations – anything you can use to store your enjoyment for recall later. Essentially, you can create positive memories for later by noticing details of things you enjoy now. When something makes you feel great or accomplished, make a mental note of your surroundings – the sights, sounds, tastes, feelings, smells, and the people are great at pinning down memories for later. In fact, people can be quite instrumental in your quest! Share your story with them, and let them enjoy with you!
Narratives are often easier to recall, and the act of sharing often leads others to initiate the savoring in the future! Tell a great story, and people will bring it up, and re-savor that moment with you for quite some time after. So without further delay, here is your assignment:
Write out one of your great stories – one that takes you, and the reader, on a journey of success. Take a stroll down memory lane and describe, in detail, the way you felt, how your peers felt and made you feel, whether you felt motivated or inspired, and end the story by describing how you feel right now – telling the story again.
If this is a story of a time that inspired or motivated you, you may find that simply retelling it can re-motivate you all over again! This is one of my favorite exercises with clients. Everyone loves to tell a great story – especially one that details an exciting, inspiring, or motivating experience!
Try it out!
