Big Magic in the Small Moments
How tiny moments shape your leadership, your energy, and your path
Somewhere between the big goals and the big deadlines, we forget that life is happening in the small frames.
There’s a lyric from one of JJ Heller’s songs that’s been echoing in my mind lately. A reminder that there’s big magic in the everyday. And the more I think about it, the more true it feels, especially for those of us who tend to live in the world of striving, achieving, and moving the ball forward.
For most of my career, I lived in the big picture.
The big milestones.
The big accomplishments.
The big external wins that signaled progress, or at least made me feel like I was “on the right track.”
But over the last couple of years, I’ve learned something surprising:
The path is made up of moments, not milestones.
And the small moments?
They often tell us more about who we are – and what matters – than anything we could check off a goals list.
Daily Delights: The Practice That Shifted Everything
A while back, I started something I now call my Daily Delights practice.
Every evening, I’d capture one moment from the day that brought me delight. Nothing fancy, just a single image and a short line about why it sparked something in me.
Sometimes the delight was “big”:
a breakthrough with a client, a meaningful connection, a workshop that landed exactly right.
But many days, it was small:
a sunrise on my walk, my dog doing something ridiculous, a latte crafted exactly the way I love it, or a quick joke or smile shared with one of my kids.
I’d snap a photo of whatever captured the moment, write a quick sentence or two, and let that be enough.
At first, it felt almost too simple.
But then something shifted.
The more I documented tiny delights, the more I noticed them.
The more I noticed them, the more my outlook changed.
I found myself less irritated by the daily annoyances: the traffic, the slow checkout line, the inbox & slacks full of “quick asks.”
And I became less consumed by the heavier frustrations: Why isn’t this project moving faster? Why isn’t my work being recognized the way I hoped?
Instead, my attention was landing on what was actually good.
And there was a lot of good.
Delight Is Data (and Why Leaders Should Care)
Here’s what I didn’t expect:
These moments weren’t just pleasant.
They were informative.
Each small delight became a tiny piece of data. The kind that leaders ignore at their own risk.
Emotional data: What sparks joy? What lifts you up?
Values data: What do you keep returning to? What feels most meaningful to you?
Energy data: When do you feel most alive? And what’s most draining?
Feedback data: What’s working in your season of life? And what isn’t?
Inner-joy data: What lights something inside you that no one else can see?
Delight is one of the most honest forms of self-awareness.
It reveals patterns long before you consciously name them.
And just like I wrote last week about your Leadership Instruction Manual — you can’t design an authentic path (or lead others well) without knowing how you operate.
This tiny practice helped me:
set clearer boundaries
understand what fueled or drained me
make better decisions about where to invest my time
show up with more presence and intention
lead with more steadiness, patience, and joy
Big leadership shifts rarely start with sweeping strategy changes.
More often, they begin with what we choose to notice.
Not Gratitude, Not Mindfulness — Attention
What I love about Daily Delights is that it’s not a gratitude list.
It’s not meditation.
It’s not another performance metric to hit.
It’s a micro-practice of attention.
Attention to what’s already here.
Attention that:
grounds you during messy seasons
clarifies your personal “why”
slows the comparison trap
highlights what’s actually working
builds resilience without forcing positivity
Attention shapes your presence.
Presence shapes your leadership.
Leadership shapes your path.
The Big Picture in a Small Frame
As we head into Thanksgiving and the season of gratitude, I’m thinking less about big sweeping expressions of thankfulness…
and more about the small frames that reveal the big picture of our lives.
The mundane moments we overlook now but may someday miss.
The small joys hiding inside ordinary days.
The moments that remind us we’re living a story richer than our achievements or titles could ever show.
Your path — the one you’re intentionally carving — is built one small moment at a time.
An Invitation
Today, just notice one thing that delighted you.
Nothing big.
Nothing profound.
Just one moment that made your shoulders drop, your heart lift, or your face soften into a smile.
Capture it.
Write it down.
Let it be enough.
Your path is built in small steps, small choices, and small moments.
Start noticing them. And see what opens up.
I’m Tracy Stone, a leadership coach who helps professionals notice what matters, step into clarity, and build the careers they’re meant for. If you’re ready to take your next step with intention, I’d love to support you.
I’m taking Thanksgiving week off, and I’ll be back in December with a new post on balance, flexibility, and sustaining momentum, especially in chaotic seasons.
Until then, may your days be filled with small moments of delight. And keep carving your path.