Why The Small Wins Are Vital For The Big Wins

You may be thinking, what the hell are small wins?

Is it when you win Will because you are short?

Nope, it’s not just when I win thank you very much, a small win is a progress point on your way towards your main goal.

For example, say that your main goal is to get out of debt.

This can be a daunting and discouraging task because it involves a lot of emotion and can feel like an impossible task when you look at it as one mountain to climb. 

Focusing on small wins helps you break down a large goal into manageable chunks.

You create a series of small wins like:

1. Consolidate your debt into a single credit card
2. Get under £20,000 in debt, then £10,000, then £5,000, etc.
3. Pay off one of your credit cards.
4. Set up a savings account.

Each of these milestones are part of a larger goal, but they’re chunked down to manageable steps.  This makes it appear easier and enables you to stick to your main goal.

So why are they so important?

Appreciating the small wins helps you feel like you’re accomplishing something as you get a dopamine hit – the ‘reward’ biochemical that gets released into the brain that makes you feel good when you have done something.

I like to set ambitious goals, like super ambitious, Right now I have a goal of empowering over 1 billion people to live a life they love.

That’s pretty bold.

It would be very easy for me to wake up every day and feel like I am treading water and not making much of a dent in it if I were to look at it on a day-by-day basis despite the fact I am constantly moving closer towards it.

The small wins give us the motivation to keep on going and that’s where it snowballs into the development of the bigger goals.

Here are some examples of some small wins.

Example #1: Get your dream job

For some people, it takes a long time to land ‘the’ dream job.

Instead of focusing on this outcome, you’d create a series of small wins that move you towards this goal.

Here are a few habits you’d focus on:

1. Write a CV relevant to the industry.
2. Develop the daily habit of searching internet job boards for the ideal role.
3. Celebrate the times when you get called for an interview even if you don’t get the role!

Small wins can help you with finding a dream job.  All you have to do is chunk down a large goal and build momentum as you complete each phase of the process.

Example #2: Achieving success in your business

Most entrepreneurs have a dream of having an abundance of business.  Unfortunately, it doesn’t happen overnight.  You need to work hard at this goal on a daily basis. 

For instance, here are a few “small wins” that you could focus on along the way:

1. Receiving your first inquiry from a potential customer
2. Getting your first sale
3. Achieving income/profit milestones (£1,000, £10,000, £100,000 etc.)
4. Getting your first client referral

Once you get in the habit of celebrating these milestones, you will soon have a thriving business.

Example #3: Feeling better about your appearance

If you want to feel better about yourself, some small wins could be:

1. Getting a new item of clothing
2. Getting a new haircut
3. Losing  X amount of weight
4. Getting a compliment on your appearance

If you get in the daily habit of taking care of yourself like doing your hair, putting nail polish on, ironing your clothes, polishing your shoes and putting money aside, you will soon start to make small wins to feeling better about your appearance – the big win!

Celebrating small wins may seem silly at first however by celebrating achievements you are attracting more opportunities to celebrate to you. If you are constantly focused on what you haven’t got then you will continue to receive what you haven’t got.

If you don’t believe me, try it!

You will find once you reach that first small win, the other ones will fall into place. You will become more motivated and wins will keep on coming.

Small wins break complex bigger goals into more manageable pieces to handle. They are effective because they reduce stress and give you a daily action plan to follow.

If you develop good daily, weekly monthly habits, of celebrating the small wins you’ll be eventually on your way to celebrate many more big wins.

Finally, I want to put a challenge to you, right now think of at least 10 small wins you can celebrate that you have achieved over the last 4 weeks.

Whilst you feel good about your achievements write them down and then think of at least 3 small wins you can work towards over the next 4 weeks to achieve your ultimate goal.

To learn more about how to make it happen, schedule a one-hour complementary coaching call with Will on how to master your time.

P.S. If you haven’t already I would encourage you to take my quiz to discover what type of business owner you are, knowing this can help take you from where you are now to becoming more successful personally, professionally and financially – quickly, efficiently and effectively.