Recently Succeed At Something? Celebrating Is Good For Your Brain

"Celebrate!" This three-syllable, nine-letter word is a familiar concept yet a relatively alien practice for many of my coaching clients. “Who, me? Celebrate?” is generally the response to my question, “How are you planning to acknowledge yourself for this accomplishment?” Rather than taking time to bask in the glory of their latest achievement, they’re already moving on to the next big thing. High achievers, please note: This behavior is not healthy. Regardless of the size of your accomplishment, you should take time to recognize it, relish it and figure out how you can replicate some or all of the steps for future successes. Your brain’s reward system will automatically help you do this — if you let it do its work. Even better, you can easily boost yourself and your brain to prepare for more successes. All too often, though, individuals will interrupt the workings of their brain’s reward system, either ignoring the “feel-good” natural chemicals their brain releases or becoming addicted to them along with stress. Both situations cause trouble for individuals and their team members. Before addressing the trouble and how to overcome it, let’s cover some basics about the brain’s reward system. As an example, say you hit a project milestone on time and on budget and note your accomplishment. You get a hit of dopamine , the “feel-good” chemical. Dopamine acts as a neurotransmitter, sending signals to other neurons that serve as a pleasurable reward. These neurons that fire together now start getting wired together in your brain. YOU MAY ALSO LIKE When you experience the dopamine reward, your brain pays attention to what you did to deserve your “feel-good” moment. That includes the brain calculating what’s needed to repeat that action and move toward achieving your goals. The dopamine also plays a role in […]

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