How this Scene in Back to the Future Illustrates a Vital Lesson in Daily Growth
When was the last time you gave yourself some credit?
When did you last celebrate your small achievements?
What about that to-do list item you avoided forever? How did you pat yourself on the back when you finally crossed it off? It doesn’t matter if it was taking a shower, making a dentist appointment, or clearing your inbox.
These may seem trivial, but when anything accomplished takes some effort, use it to fuel getting to your next goal.
This is the power of micro-wins.
The life-saving power of micro-wins
Micro-wins—seeing them, celebrating them, and making them a big deal by giving them my attention—are the fuel getting me through the next day, the next challenge, and the next rep.
I’m picturing it like the end of Back the Future when Doc Brown comes blasting back in his Delorean time machine from the future to retrieve Marty and his girlfriend.
Doc rummages through the garbage bins and gets a can of soda and banana peels, exclaiming, “I need fuel!” tossing them into his Mr. Fusion Home Energy Reactor so they have enough power to get back to the year 2015.
Micro-wins are like the cans of soda and banana peels—these small spurts of power that ward off burnout as I continue to work and grow and make my way further outside my comfort zone.
These micro-wins act as self-validation, giving me proof that if I keep going, growth happens.
Let’s face it…the benchmark of “making it” is an ever-changing mirage
It’s imperative we look back and see how far we’ve come, no matter how little or much, on a regular basis because the benchmark of “making it” is an ever-changing mirage. If we wait until the big wins to give ourselves a pat on the back, we’ll lose heart and lose steam.
Micro-wins can be as minuscule as remembering to drink water or as big as setting a boundary with a loved one.
Big milestones achieved, while wonderful and what we’re all reaching for, have gotten the spotlight for too long.
I think it’s time we give micro-wins the stage they deserve because small victories add up, and I’m beginning to believe they’re a juicy secret to success.
The power of incremental growth
I’ve been reminding myself of this a lot lately, “Incremental growth is the only thing that’s sustainable. Anything you do every day, whether you try hard at it or not, will improve over time. Undoubtedly.”
You just have to faithfully show up.
I’ve been doing my best to show up every day the last few weeks, putting in my hours of work, conquering resistance, and at the risk of sounding like a gym bro, putting in my reps.
I’m outside of my comfort zone in this recent career shift. I’ve been outside of it for months now, and I have a feeling I’ll be here for much longer.
Which is okay. It’s what I want.
However, I’m realizing sheer willpower and obsessive effort to keep showing up and moving the needle of progress, while it’s worth the work, is exhausting.
I’ve been waking up empty—not in the dumps, but sitting up in bed, gearing up for another day of pushing, pushing, pushing. Pushing beyond the resistance, the self-sabotage, and the self-doubt that’s been coming at me from all angles with questions and comments like:
“If this were going to work, it would’ve worked by now.”
“You’re basically unemployed. How long do you think you can keep this up? You think you can just go on without a steady income forever?”
“What if you have a drastic financial emergency and you’re drained of everything? What then?”
“You must be doing this wrong. You have very little to show for the last few months. I don’t know if you’re cut out for this.”
“If it’s taking you this long to get things in place, how do you ever expect to make any real money with it?”
Just some sweet thoughts as I’m making my cup of coffee every morning!
Despite this chorus of chaotic inner dialogue that I’ll admit I see the validity of, I keep showing up. I wade through the muck of it. I’m not waiting for these thoughts to cease before I take action because I know the only way to build confidence in anything is to see the obstacle, move toward it, and figure out how to get up and over.
And, then do that again, and again, and again, and again.
But building that confidence with each new obstacle tackled is draining, and it seems like with each new challenge I come up against, I have less energy than before.
The willpower is still there. The commitment is still there.
But I’m mentally and emotionally running out of steam. This is where micro-wins are giving me the boost I need.
Some of my recent micro-wins:
I learned to cook two new meals
I was honest with a friend
I saved my monstera from too much sun exposure
I went on a few dates
I reached out to someone for help
I spent a day deep-cleaning my apartment
I started going to bed earlier
What are your micro-wins?
I implore you to look back at the last few months. Go week-by-week and make a list of all the micro-wins you can remember.
Everyone’s micro-wins will look different, and what I love most about them is the bar is set wherever you want it to be. What you label a micro-win is up to you.
What’s the hurt in being proud of ourselves for doing these little, everyday things? What’s the hurt in giving ourselves a high-five? Being alive is hard. Why wouldn’t I appreciate myself for the tiny things I do?
Celebrating my micro-wins doesn’t make us complacent about the bigger things we want to accomplish. It only gives us more energy to keep working toward them.
Do everything in your power to nurture your hardworking brain and soul as you push yourself for more.
Celebrating your micro-wins gives the pain of incremental growth meaning, and we need that fuel if we’re going to make it.
So identify your cans of soda and banana peels, and let your micro-wins remind you that you’ve got this; keep going; you’re making progress.
What are some of your micro-wins?