Life isn’t just about the big things, often it’s the little things that brighten your day, make a difference or ensure an event is memorable and special.
As they say, the best things in life, come in small packages.
And I suppose I’ve never really considered the full meaning behind that saying until Vauxhall got in touch with me about their fabulous new #SmallVictories campaign.
They challenged me to celebrate the everyday small victories, the daily wins that make us smile and the ‘fist pump’ moments that are small, but perfectly formed.
Whether it’s getting to the platform just as the train glides to a stop in front of you, nabbing the last of your fave chocolates from the packet (I’m looking at you Mr Malteasers Teaser) or finding a £1 already in the trolley, often we don’t give enough credit to how fantastic a feeling life’s small victories can incite.
They truly can make an ordinary day, a great one – or a rubbish day, proportionally better.
And so, whatever kind of day you’re having right now (here’s hoping it’s a great one) – let’s celebrate 7 of my fave small victories together, guaranteed to make you smile!
This is a paid advertorial in collaboration with Vauxhall
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“It’s the little things that matter most”
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1. Squeezing the last of your conditioner out of the bottle to reveal EXACTLY the right amount
It’s never a great feeling to run out of your favourite conditioner.
I become slightly attached to my conditioner, especially if it’s a good one – and so possibly the most satisfying thing in the world is showering, squeezing your bottle and revealing exactly the right sized dollop of product for just one more use.
Giving you adequate time to head to the shops before the next shower for another bottle. Phew!
2. Finding an umbrella in your car/bar/drawer/cupboard when you need it
I’m not sure what quite happens when it comes to umbrellas, but they seem to have legs of their own! I have owned countless umbrellas in my almost 24 years on this planet and yet I rarely take them on an outing more than twice before they disappear into the abyss, along with thousands of bobby pins and one pence coins.
But sometimes, just sometimes, a small victory can be claimed when you find one lurking just when it starts pouring down outside. This happened to me recently during a particularly heavy downpour and I couldn’t have cried tears of joy when I discovered an umbrella hiding in my boot. Yay!
3. Popping on the radio to reveal your FAVE song
There’s something about music that really makes or breaks a road trip, isn’t there? A boring, rainy journey can be made fun with the right song (and often, the right company) so one of my all time favourite victories is when you pop your bottom on the seat, flick on the radio – and your favourite song is blaring back at you. Or even a song that brings your mood up! Or a song that you associate with a certain memory or occasion.
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4. Finding a pub serving a hearty roast dinner on the way home from a long road trip
You know the score.
You’ve been to visit family, or friends.
It’s Sunday afternoon and you’ve been driving for a good hour or two.
The rain might be pouring down.
You’ve got the wind-screen wipers going.
The heaters are on full blast.
Your car journey snacks are running low.
And then, you’re not sure if you’re quite imagining it, but in the distance, you can see a pub…
It’s lit up from the inside and there are twinkling lights illuminating the windows.
And the crowing joy – a huge sign which reveals they serve roast dinner with ALL the trimmings.
They’re open and better yet they haven’t run out of beef – AND there’s a cute table by the fire.
Life doesn’t get much better now, does it!
5. When your food arrives just as you come back from the loo
Perhaps a slightly odd addition, but one of my favourites nonetheless.
So you’ve ordered, you’ve finished your drink – and you’re heading to the loo.
Then, just as you arrive back at your seat, your food swoops underneath your nose, lowered onto the table in front of you by the waiter and it’s ready to dive into.
It’s one of those small victories we probably don’t acknowledge verbally, but it’s super satisfying!
6. Finding the perfect parking space in a busy car-park
Admittedly, this never used to be me.
Parking has definitely never been a skill of mine and if I did step out of the car to reveal a perfect park, it’s likely it was a fluke rather than a regular occurrence.
But hey, we all have our talents and our weaknesses, eh?
But there’s is something so innately satisfying about spotting a perfect parking space in a busy car-park and mastering the perfect park!
It almost makes up for the slight sense of panic you feel when a car-park is so packed you wonder whether you’ll have to turn back and scupper your plans.
Luckily the Corsa has a Park Assist feature, which includes a handy camera screen with lines to help you angle into the space – and sound notifications if you’re getting a tad too close to the cars next to you.
I’ve never had the luxury of this before in previous cars I’ve owned and boy is it a HUGE bonus!
David was super impressed at my parking skills!
And I was so impressed, I took a picture to send to add to the family whatsapp group – where I’m notorious for my rubbish parking!
It makes such a massive difference.
And it certainly makes this small victory a far more frequent one!
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“Be a seeker of everyday magic”
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“DREAM BIG – and enjoy life’s little things”
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7. Hitting all the green lights during rush hour
The other day, I was in a HUGE rush to get to a family lunch.
Typically, I’m always in a huge rush – but this time, even more so.
I was stressed, flustered, slightly bedraggled.
However there’s no-one to blame but myself for not getting up early enough.
Sleep always takes precedent unfortunately.
But then, as if by some sort of miracle – every single set of traffic lights we reached – were green!
As a result, we made up time on our journey and arrived five minutes early.
I could have hugged both the car and the traffic lights!
WIN WIN WIN!
The Vauxhall Corsa
And while we’re on the topic of cars, I thought I’d use the opportunity to tell you a little bit more about this snazzy Vauxhall Corsa, which is jam packed with great features to allow you to enjoy a whole host of small victories everyday!
For example, rather than waiting for your favourite song to jump onto Radio 1, you can connect your phone via Bluetooth to the Apple Car Play feature and within seconds, Little Mix is blasting through the speakers, your spotify road trip playlist ready and waiting to accompany you on your journey.
The LED lights are specially designed to help you see round corners (helping pinpoint that hearty roast dinner stop-off point sooner rather than later).
The Park Assist feature makes nabbing the perfect parking space in a busy car-park that little bit easier!
Plus, while we’re not quite there yet in terms of wintery weather, the in-built windscreen heater ensures you don’t have to spend frosty mornings scraping your car – which I’m sure we can all agree, is a much appreciated small victory as the colder months approach!
And if that wasn’t enough, it even has a driver assistance feature with high beam sensors and forward collision alerts, ensuring your safety is paramount and reassuring any on-the-road fears!
I know this feature in itself gave me a huge confidence boost, as the high beam gives you one less thing to think about when you’re driving on dark evenings!
There’s energy saving red LEDs.
And perfect for Instagram addicts and keen Tweeters (though not while driving, I must add!), the Corsa is even equipped with OnStar, which offers 4G Wifi to support up to seven devices.
It’s stylish, with all of the modern day amenities you could wish for – plus it’s super economical, smooth and quiet!
We had our little Corsa with us for a week – and in that time, I’m delighted to say that I really improved my road confidence and was super impressed by how easy and compact it is to drive.
It had a great panoramic view of the road, it’s very comfortable and as it’s a three-door, it’s super nippy for whizzing around the city.
And so whether you can count it as a small victory or a big one, I’m looking into buying a Corsa for myself for the long haul because honestly it’s the first car I’ve driven that I’ve felt totally relaxed and at one with the road!
I’ll certainly celebrate that!
Shop the outfit:
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Do you have any small victories you can add to the list or share? I’d love to hear your thoughts on Vauxhall’s fabulous campaign!
Photography by David Mitchell
