A Sense of Occasion

Life is but a series of small occasions to be celebrated.

One of my sentiments it that I believe that life is a series of occasions that should be celebrated, no matter their size or significance. Perhaps this is sense of inherent optimism that every bump should be cultivated into something magic, or maybe I just really like parties.

In the volatile emotional climate of being a human, celebration can be the last thing we can commit to and the most likely to be put off. Why? Is this the cultivation of pressure and feeling exposed? Or maybe it’s because celebration, in many ways, unwillingly leads us into retrospect and the benign comparison of achievements.  Regardless of perfection and how far you’ve gone beyond the benchmark, isn’t it enough just to enjoy the moment with the people you love (or like), in any capacity, no matter how big or small?

When I did the research, I realised that celebration isn’t only great because it’s an excuse to pop bottles of champagne. Celebration is responsible for cultivating further successes and raising positivity.

Here’s why celebrating is great, beyond the Veuve Clicquot fountains, chocolate dipped strawberries and penis straws:

1. Marking successes with celebrations gives you the chance to evaluate what you’ve done well and where you could improve. The hindsight that celebration comes with also gives you clarity for the future and can inspire a strategic change in direction or new idea.

2. If you’re someone that tends to be quite hard on themselves then celebrating forcefully nudges you into the habit of gratitude. It gives you a solid reminder to reflect and acknowledge all the hard work you have done. If it’s over a period of time and you can view statistics, compare dollars, words, kilograms or substantial lifestyle changes you’ll be proud of yourself and grateful for all the effort you’ve made to come to said milestone.

3. Celebration is amazing for cultivating a positive (success) mindset. Not only does the champagne haze leave you feeling salubrious but following through with celebrating will coax you into actually acknowledging your achievements.

4. Motivation and momentum are often intrinsically linked. If you break down your challenges into small milestones it will be easier to find the motivation to meet them, knowing that your next celebration (big or small) is your next target to work towards.

5. And my favourite reason….? It feels good. Celebrating something you (or someone close to you) has achieved is such a wonderful exchange of positive emotion. It both acknowledges the achievement and seamlessly allows others to express their feelings towards you and your milestone. Sometimes humans need a little nudge to soften against the grain that propels us all into our own personal pursuit of passion.

Life is too short not to celebrate, so without further ado, Cheers!