When we decide to start working towards a goal, it feels like we are about to climb a massive mountain. We set our sights on the highest peak – the place where we will have achieved what we have set out to do – and we begin stepping, clawing and stumbling towards that peak. The mountain between us and the summit of our success might loom over us and make us wonder how we will ever conquer it, or it might feel like an annoyance that’s just getting in our way. However we think about it, we usually want to get it out of the way as quickly as possible so that we can stand on that highest peak… and look for the next mountain we want to climb.
I had made it my mission to be a lifelong climber – constantly setting and going for goals (I’ve mentioned my hamster-on-a-wheel mentality before). I would complete one thing but already be looking towards the next and then the next and the next… You might think that that’s commendable and something to be proud of, but there was no balance in my life. I felt anxious when I wasn’t working towards something and I didn’t take time to reflect on what I had learned and achieved during my climbs.
Not too long ago, just before I started my climb towards a life coaching qualification, I worked with an amazing life coach who introduced me to the idea of celebrating success. And I don’t mean just throwing a party at the peak of the mountain, I mean celebrating the overcoming of tricky places and obstacles throughout the entire climb. I also learned to stop and take the time to look back and see how far I had come, as well as to look around and enjoy the amazing views along the way. This was a foreign concept to me because I was so focussed on results as opposed to the process of growing, possibly getting even better results and maybe even having some fun along the way. I also had no idea that in celebrating, I would learn how important it is to help others celebrate – to lift them up and cheer for them as often and as loudly as possible.
This shift towards balance, reflection, gratitude, mindfulness and appreciation is something I am constantly working on in my own life, and something I help my coaching clients discover as they navigate their own mountains.
Are you also a serial mountain slayer, battling your way through each goal as if your life depended on it and then immediately looking for the next fight? Then as you’re reading this, maybe you’re realising that you have forgotten that mountains offer amazing views, and that at least some of the experience of getting to the top is supposed to be enjoyable and rewarding!
There are so many opportunities to stop, turn around and breathe deeply as you take in the view, and then celebrate how far you’ve come as you pursue what’s important to you. And those celebrations can take any form that you like – you might reward yourself with a special treat, a long walk in nature for reflection and gratitude, a meal with loved ones, a day to just do whatever you feel like or even an act of kindness towards someone else using what you have gained or learned.
Conquering your mountains seems to be all about the climb, but if you never take the time to pause and celebrate how far you’ve come, how will you ever enjoy the view?
Wishing you incredible views celebrated in ways that bring meaning and joy to the climb.
Portal to Change 