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February 28, 2017

When we Achieve Great Things, we should be Celebrating This.

Encouragement, kindness, hope. They all take birth in small moments.

I personally love the flexibility of starting small. It’s liberating.

When I started my exercise regime, after having led a sedentary life for two decades, I started small. Like, really teeny-weeny small. And I made it playful, dodging my fear. I started doing squats at home, dancing to my favourite numbers and stretching between television breaks.

The results took time, but I worked with myself before I worked on myself. Today, I alternate between the gym, yoga and walks through the week, savouring each experience. And when I remember how it all started, it makes me smile; when it all started, I acknowledged the small, but more importantly I acknowledged myself.

As we look around, in our professional successes and failures, in our personal achievements and losses, we are more attuned to celebrating the big. We don’t celebrate the small. We forget that while grand and large scale projects are celebrated and talked about, it’s always small steps that makes them possible.

In my two decades of straddling roles as a mother, a partner and a full-time employee, I realized that many small wins went unnoticed. But those small moments were the turning points—new discoveries or unique lessons. They were milestones of choices gone sour or ripe. But nonetheless, they were fruitful.

I feel that beginnings are the most underrated part of stories because they are tested on the mighty scale of the outcomes, not the gumption of the initiative or the journey that gumption sparks.

Why not release this pressure to acknowledge just the big stuff? Nurture the small effort. Just like a seed, it has a story to unfold.

Parents would relate to the joy of watching their baby’s first steps. There is a magic in that particular first because not only does it encapsulate the journey of growth, but also the moment of courage.

We should all celebrate our first steps, however small. Our first day at the gym, our first call to the client, our first presentation to the team. Because without firsts, we would be still thinking about starting. Small firsts are still firsts.

Change is daunting. But a small change is easier. The expectations are lighter. The noise is lesser. When we start something new, with a small step, it can be playful, almost like a sparrow chirping on our windowsill. Playfulness makes it easier to embrace and follow.

Small is fun; play a little.

The best ideas, the most amazing creative work, the most scintillating craft starts from a small thought, a tiny inspiration, a flicker of imagination. It is the manifestation of a belief that we might have been carrying inside for years.

Small is sacred, just like us.

Learning this early helps us change sooner. Small initiatives ensure that we test waters before we launch into the ocean. We make time to absorb the learning and make changes. Small steps open big doors for learning.

Let us all celebrate the small. Who knows what the next small step holds?

 

 

Author: Alka Sharma

Image: Pixabay

Editor: Callie Rushton

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