January is a great time to get stuff done around the house! My husband and I are renovating, and this long weekend we approached the dreaded task of painting the bedroom. On Monday, my husband was out for the day, and I decided that I would single-handedly finish the undercoat and 2 coats of paint (in 40-degree heat), so we could move back into our bedroom by the end of the day. (Now that I type it out loud, it sounds a little ridiculous!).

Anyone who has painted before has probably guessed by now that I didn’t finish everything I set out to achieve. In fact, it took me most of the day to finish the undercoat! At the end of the day, feeling hot and exhausted, I was equal parts happy with what I’d achieved and disappointed that I hadn’t finished everything I wanted to. Painting a room takes so much longer than I anticipated!

While contemplating these feelings, my thoughts turned to the kids I work with. As parents and health professionals, we spend a lot of our time comparing our kids’ skills to where they should be for their age, and focusing on what they’re not able to do so we know how to help them improve.While this is important for setting goals and helping our kids to catch up to their peers, it can often mean that we miss the small achievements that our kids are making along the way. Sure, they may not be developing and progressing as quickly as others, but does that mean they’re not succeeding? Absolutely not! Every time our kids do something they weren’t able to before, that’s success. Celebrating these small achievements shows our kids that we notice their effort, and gives them the motivation that they need to keep striving and working towards their goals.

As we start this new school year, I’ll be making it a priority to notice the small accomplishments that my clients are making as they work towards their goals. Will you join me in celebrating the small wins?

Libby