You Need to Pat Yourself in the Back Once in a While
There is nothing wrong in patting yourself in the back if you feel like you have done a great job at work. You are not being narcissistic because of what you are doing. You are also not being selfish simply because you are thanking yourself.
Motivation should come from within
It is great if you receive praises and commendations from other people. It also feels good to receive awards for your accomplishments. However, they are not always going to happen. At some point, you need to stop expecting external rewards and rely on yourself to provide praises and commendations. You should find a way to feel motivated, or else you might give up.
People will pull you down
It is easy to surrender when everyone around you makes you feel worthless. You cant let them make you feel bad all the time. Remember that even when you have done something great, they will remain as critics. If you dont allow yourself to feel proud of your accomplishments, it is easy for you to sink.
Small things matter
You dont need to achieve big things before you congratulate yourself. You can praise yourself even for the smallest achievements. It can be a document that you finished typing. It can also be an email you have finally sent. You need to stop setting really high standards or else you will get tired. You can reward yourself in other ways if you have achieved bigger things in life.
Your accomplishment is part of a bigger picture
At work, you always need to see the relevance of what you are doing in a larger picture. You should see how your finished task can affect what other people are doing. Imagine if you did not do what you have done. Everything else could fall apart. Therefore, it helps to know your importance and the tasks that you have done.
You still have a lot of things to do
When you have already finished a task, there are still tons that you need to finish. If you dont take a break and realize your huge achievement, you might not feel motivated to do the rest. Again, no one else will push you to do other things except yourself. When you keep pushing harder and praise yourself in the process, you wont mind doing a lot more.
Dont feel bad about praising yourself. You are an amazing person with special skills. You need to feel proud of what you have done and forget about what other people would say. They will keep pulling you down or tell you that you have not done anything right. If you let these negative ideas sink in, you will most likely fail. There are many ways to reward yourself without spending a lot of money. Find a way to figure out what works for you.
Photo Attribution:
Featured and 1st image from https://unsplash.com/photos/MW4laRuT6zc
2nd image from https://www.jjdigeronimo.com/patting-yourself-on-the-back/
