In a bustling market in Lagos, there was a woman who ran a small fabric shop. She had been in business for over twenty years. One thing made her different from everyone else. She kept every receipt. Every single one. Old notebooks filled with records occupied an entire shelf behind her counter. One afternoon, a young entrepreneur visited her shop and asked why she held onto documents from years ago. The woman smiled and pulled out a faded receipt. "This was my first sale," she said. The amount was small. Very small. The young entrepreneur laughed. "You kept this?" She nodded. Then she showed him another receipt. And another. Each represented a milestone. The first day she made a profit. The first customer who bought fabric for a wedding. The first time she supplied materials to an entire church group. The woman explained: "People celebrate big victories but forget the small ones that made them possible." That lesson stayed with me. Many people are so focused on where they're going that they never appreciate how far they've come. They compare themselves to others and overlook their own progress. But growth is often easier to see when you remember where you started. The shop owner understood that gratitude fuels perseverance. When you recognize today's progress, tomorrow's challenges become easier to face. Sometimes the best motivation isn't looking ahead. It's looking back and realizing how much you've already overcome. What's one small achievement from your past that you're still proud of today?
