Savoring Life's Smallest Moments: The Hidden Key to Growing Resilience

 


Savoring Life's Smallest Moments: The Hidden Key to Growing Resilience

Written by The Resilient Rose

In a world that moves at the speed of a swipe, it's easy to miss the quiet, golden moments that nourish our spirit.

Yet the science is clear: savoring- the mindful practice of attending to and enhancing positive experiences, is a powerful, evidence-based way to grow wellbeing and resilience. 

As Fred Bryant (2003) beautifully explains, savoring isn't just about feeling good; it's about stretching those good feelings, soaking them in, and letting them expand within us. It's a slow bloom in a fast world, and for many of us, it's the very antidote we didn't know we needed.

In the spirit of Brene Brown (2010), who reminds us that "vulnerability is the birthplace of joy," savoring asks us to be brave enough to fully feel good, not rush past it, not downplay it, but lean in with open-hearted wonder. 

What Exactly Is Savoring?

At its heart, savoring is the conscious, intentional effort to notice, appreciate, and enhance positive experiences (Bryant & Veroff, 2007). It's what happens when you:

  • Pause to taste your morning coffee instead of gulping it down.
  • Replay a funny memory just to feel the laughter again.
  • Tell a friend about the highlight of your day and watch it sparkle anew in the telling.
Research (Bryant, 2003; Chadwick et al., 2021) shows that savoring strengthens emotional resilience, reduces distress, and increases life satisfaction, especially when paired with mindfulness. And here's the best part... You don't have to wait for a big win to savor. You can savor the everyday ordinary, the way sunlight falls through the window, the warmth of your child's hand, the burst of your favorite song on the radio. Savoring makes the small moments big enough to carry you.

How Savoring Builds Resilience

Especially for adolescents (and let's be honest, for all of us), savoring is more than a "nice to have"- it's a survival skill.

Research by Lau et al. (2023) found that mindfulness and savoring were strongly linked to lower stress and greater life satisfaction during the pandemic. When life feels overwhelming, savoring creates emotional pockets of strength. It builds what Brene Brown calls "wholeheartedness",  a way of living with courage, gratitude, and openness. 

Practical Ways to Start Savoring Today

You don't need hours of free time. You just need a willingness to slow down and lean in.

  • Mindful Moments
Pause when something good happens. Breathe it in. Notice the sights, sounds, and textures around you.

  • Gratitude Journaling
Write down one thing that made you smile today. Big or small. Or try the "Rose, Bud, Thorn" activity. This is a reflective exercise where individuals identify positives (Roses), areas for improvement (Buds), and challenges (Thorns) related to a specific situation, project, or time period. It's a way to encourage self-awareness, acknowledge strengths and weaknesses, and identify opportunities for growth.

  • Sharing Joy
Tell someone about a beautiful moment you experienced. Let it grow in the telling. 

  • Savoring Rituals
Create tiny traditions, like a walk at sunset, a slow Sunday Brekky, and treat them as sacred. As Curtis Hemm said in his TEDx talk, savoring is a recipe for life. It's a way of nourishing yourself with presence, wonder, and joy.

Final Thoughts: Bloom at Your Own Pace

As The Resilient Rose, I've learned this firsthand: We don't build resilience by bracing harder. We build it by allowing ourselves to feel more deeply. We bloom not by rushing, but by savoring the slow unfurling of our own lives. 

So today I invite you, tenderly, bravely, to find one thing to savor. Let it remind you that growth doesn't come from racing through life. It comes from living it, one wholehearted moment at a time. 

What small moment will you savor today? I'd love to hear! Share in the comments below! #BuilttoBloom #SavoringLife #ResilientRose #PositivePsychology 

References

Brown, B. (2010). The gifts of Imperfection: Let go of who you think you’re supposed to be and embrace who you are. Hazelden.

Bryant, F.B. (2003). Savoring Beliefs Inventory (SBI): A scale for measuring beliefs about savoring. Journaling of Mental Health (Abingdon, England), 12 (2), 175-196. https://doi.org/10.1080/0963823031000103489

Bryant, F.B., & Veroff, J. (2007). Savoring: A New Model of Positive Experience (1st ed.). Psychology Press. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315088426

Chadwick, E.D., Jose, P.E., & Bryant, F.B. (2021). Styles of Everyday Savoring Differentially Predict Well-being in Adolescents Over One Month. Journal of Happiness Studies, 22(2), 803-824. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10902-02000252-6

Hemm, C. (2018, November). Savoring place: A recipe for life [Video]. TEDxYouth@PHS https://www.ted.com/talks/curtiss_hemm_savoring_place_a_recipe_for_life

Kennelly, S. (2012, July 23). 10 Steps to Savoring the Good Things in Life. Greater Good Magazine.

Lau, N.S., Cheung, R.Y.M., Lai, C.K.S, Lau, A.Y.T., & Fung, M.C., (2023). Effects of mindfulness on stress, life satisfaction, and savoring beliefs among Hong Kong Chinese adolescents during the COVID-19 pandemic. Frontiers in Psychology, 14, 1118288. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1118288

 

 


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