The Joy Revolution: Why Celebrating Small Wins Can Transform Your Life - Week #4
""The more you praise and celebrate your life, the more there is in life to celebrate." - Oprah Winfrey
What if the key to a more courageous life was simply a heartfelt "thank you" or a fist bump after a tough day? This week (week #4), in our courage journey, let's focus on celebrating every small victory we often overlook.
Imagine stepping out of a challenging meeting, proud of your efforts. Recently, I celebrated a personal milestone—the paperback release of "Scare Your Soul"—by attending a Jon Batiste concert. The real highlight? Seeing Suleika Jaouad in the audience. Her strength in facing cancer is a reminder of the courage it takes to keep showing up for life.
For those who don't know, Suleika Jaouad is a force of nature, a beacon of resilience, and an inspiration to millions (including Dana and me).
At 22, just as she was poised to embark on a promising career as a foreign correspondent, Suleika was diagnosed with leukemia. Her world turned upside down, but instead of retreating, she turned her experience into a powerful voice for those navigating life's unexpected detours.
She wrote the Emmy Award-winning New York Times column "Life, Interrupted," penned the bestselling memoir "Between Two Kingdoms," and created the amazing The Isolation Journals with Suleika Jaouad
Through it all, Suleika has been unflinchingly honest about her struggles, her fears, and her determination to find beauty and meaning in the midst of hardship.
Just recently, Suleika had announced publicly that she was facing a recurrence of cancer and would be going back into chemo.
The weight of this news hung in the air as Dana and I took our seats, both of us acutely aware of the courage it takes to keep showing up, to keep celebrating life, even when that life throws you curveball after curveball.
Week #3 Your Celebration Challenge
Research from Stanford's BJ Fogg PhD shows that celebrating our wins—big and small—can reinforce positive behaviors and make them habits.
If Suleika can find joy amid challenges, so can we. Every act of bravery deserves recognition. Let’s raise a glass to the art of celebration and to the courage it takes to show up each day.
Embrace Celebration in this week's Scare Your Soul newsletter and weekly challenge. After you nail that presentation or even just tackle your inbox, take a moment to acknowledge your success. Celebrate it! Whether it’s a victory dance or a quick pause to appreciate your effort, these moments matter.
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Rollercoasters, Subways, and Sweaty Palms: The Thin Line Between Terror and Thrill - Week #3
"The very thing we are afraid of, our brains are afraid of. And yet, that is the thing we also want the most." - Cory Allen
It's week number three of our six weeks of getting down to the basics of courage, are you ready to uncover the science of excitement over fear?
Last week, I found myself in New York, feeling like a small dog at a giant convention alongside the brilliant Dorie Clark.
Amidst the whirlwind of intense meetings and breakthrough discussions (where I mostly nodded and pretended to understand), I received a text from Cam DuPuy, one of our beloved Scare Your Soul ambassadors, inviting me to dinner in midtown.
Now, here's where it gets interesting.
I've always been pretty intimidated by the NYC subway system. It's like a giant, underground snake pit, but instead of snakes, it's filled with impatient New Yorkers and mysterious puddles.
I successfully made my way to dinner, but when i stood up to leave, I realized my phone's battery was about to die....
No maps, no easy escape route. Just me, my wits, and a city full of eight million people.
I had a choice: take a $40 cab ride back downtown (the easy route) or navigate the subway system relying solely on the kindness of strangers and my own intuition (which, let's be honest, once told me that gas station sushi was a good idea).
I chose the path of discomfort.
As I descended the subway stairs, I made a conscious decision. Instead of letting fear take the wheel, I reframed the situation.
"How exciting is this?" I thought. "When do I ever get to navigate a big city without technology, relying only on my wits and the help of others?"
Week #3 Choose Excitement
This small linguistic shift can transform a daunting task into an exhilarating opportunity for growth. It's like putting on rose-colored glasses, but for your emotions.
It's not about denying the butterflies in your stomach. They're still there, probably having a rave.
But you're reinterpreting their meaning.
Choose Excitement in this week's Scare Your Soul newsletter and weekly challenge, we explore how to choose excitement over fear during your next professional challenge, whether it's a presentation, a difficult conversation or trying to figure out the office coffee machine.