Many people reach periods when they feel like they are not winning. There’s the employee who overextended herself for months without acknowledgement or positive feedback. There’s the father who prepares lunches and taxis his children without hearing “thanks, dad.” These types of experiences can build up and place us in a negative thinking space. Because we can get trapped in our thinking, it’s beneficial to celebrate small victories during both good and bad times. Celebrating small victories allows us to put checkmarks in the positive column of our experiences ledger. The employee might celebrate completing a portion of long-term project and the father might celebrate his son asking him to play a board game together. Seeing these positive checkmarks can improve overall levels of happiness, balance the ledger, or provide hope about the future.