The election is over. Well, as I’m writing this post it is mostly over; votes are still being counted and who knows what will happen from there. It was an unprecedented election with a lot hanging in the balance, no matter which side you voted for. Is it a 
happy ending? I imagine for some it is and for others it isn’t. Regardless, I am happy it is almost over. I am even happier that the political ads are over! I feel the same way when the Christmas music gets turned off after the season ends, by the way Christmas is only 49 days away.?
In psychology there is a rule known as the Peak End Rule. The rule states that people will judge an experience largely based on how they felt at its peak (i.e., its most intense point) and at its end, rather than the total sum or average of every moment of the experience.
Years ago, I went on vacation and the travel to get to the destination was miserable. The airline changed our flight and notified us late, so we missed it. Then, the next flight was delayed due to weather, causing us to miss our connecting flight. After all the extra hours of travel, we finally got to the hotel, only to find that our room was in disarray! Clearly it was a bad start to the vacation, but I can tell you it was probably one of the best trips I ever had. The place was beautiful, the service was awesome, and the return home was effortless. That is what I remember about the vacation, a happy ending to a difficult beginning.
The endings of things seem to leave an imprint on us, and regardless of the winner, the ending of this election will be no different; it will leave its impression. As I mentioned last week, this year has been a mess. Despite that, there have been good things that happened this year, and a lot has come to the forefront. It has shown us that as amazing as we are as a country and as individuals, there is still much to be done.
In order to be successful, we have to keep putting in the work, continue to learn from our experiences and keep moving forward. How can you build upon your successes and continue to grow? If you want to talk about it, as always feel free to reach out. There’s still time to give 2020 the happy ending we all deserve!
“You can’t just hope for happy endings. You have to believe in them. Then do the work, take the risks.” – Nora Roberts
P.S.- This weekend, consider the Peak End Rule and look for a way to end this election and 2020 with positive thoughts.
V-