THE THOUGHT

I’ve decided to celebrate letter #5—congratulations, we made it! If you know me, you'll recognize this as rare. I'm known to obsessively focus on the final goal, as if it were an actual destination.

In recent years, I've shifted my attention toward celebrating smaller victories, because two things happen when you're doing it right:

• A larger milestone will always be waiting just beyond reach.

• The person who sets out is never the same one who arrives.

I've rushed blindly toward big goals enough times to arrive and realize the achievement lacks meaning. I've missed the journey, the transformation, and every step along the way. Have you experienced something similar? One day I'll tell you how I became an architect—it's a perfect example.

This makes me wonder: Why do we underestimate small wins? How would the world look if our smallest victories counted most?

THE DEEP DIVE

Why Small Wins Matter Most

In an influential study, Harvard researchers Teresa Amabile and Steven Kramer uncovered something surprising: motivation isn't primarily driven by major achievements, but by small moments of meaningful progress—a phenomenon they termed the Progress Principle. They found people felt happiest, most engaged, and creative when experiencing incremental advancement toward a goal.

Neuroscience explains why: these minor accomplishments trigger dopamine, a neurotransmitter fueling pleasure and reinforcing positive habits. Dopamine teaches our brains to repeat behaviors that produce these rewarding feelings. Over time, these moments build powerful momentum.

Our culture glorifies big achievements—yet ironically, the steady stacking of smaller victories most reliably predicts sustained success. Amabile found that 76% of days when people felt highly engaged involved meaningful incremental progress, while setbacks carried nearly twice the emotional weight.

But if small wins are psychologically essential, why do we overlook them? Our minds naturally tilt toward negativity bias, causing us to disproportionately focus on setbacks rather than small successes. We dismiss minor victories precisely because they seem ordinary or insignificant compared to larger goals.

Intentionally recognizing small wins activates a powerful feedback loop: progress triggers dopamine, dopamine boosts motivation, and motivation encourages further action. Embracing this dynamic can meaningfully reshape our habits, leading to lasting change.

THE PRACTICE

Experimenting with Small Wins

Acknowledging daily small wins completely transforms motivation. The practice just requires a deliberate moment of awareness.

If you're curious, you might try this yourself: spend a week observing the small progress you make each day. You don't need to meticulously journal, just briefly acknowledge the moments when you complete a single task or successfully navigate a tricky conversation. Notice how you feel after recognizing these moments.

I've found that celebrating small wins shifts my attention from frustration about unfinished tasks toward appreciating incremental progress. This makes setbacks feel less discouraging and builds resilience when things don't go as planned.

I like to think tomorrow I'll wake as someone new—someone who might approach each moment differently. But tonight, I pause, celebrating the small victories my present self collected, knowing each tiny win was the best she could offer today.