Tyra Banks got called "Lightbulb Head". Chris Colfer was stuffed into lockers. Rihanna was mocked for not being "black enough". Howard Stern, he had to go to judo school just to learn to defend himself. And as for Paul Stanley, he had to grow his hair long enough so they covered his ears because he was tired of being called the ‘one-eared monster’ at school. And all of them not only survived but also thrived. Teresa Amabile, professor at Harvard Business School and Steven Krammer, authors of the book The Progress Principle: Using Small Wins to Ignite Joy, Engagement, and Creativity at Work, examine how small wins can help people who are bullied to overcome their problems.

While he was growing up, Paul Stanley faced big problems. There was little chance that he would one day be playing for the world’s longest-lasting and successful band. He was born with a facial deformity that resulted in him having a half-formed ear and being partially deaf. His sister was mentally ill and sometimes violent. His parents had problems of their own and did not support him either. He was constantly bullied by his peers, had to deal with unsympathetic teachers and a mentally ill sister. Life was tough and he didn’t know how to deal with bullying. But he overcame it by taking little steps at a time instead of taking one giant step towards success.

Teresa Amabile and Steven Krammer put their finger on the change little wins can bring in people’s everyday lives. They had 238 people working on creative teams send the electric dairies about how they thought their workday had been. They asked respondents to talk about small achievements that made them happy in their daily routine. From around 12,000 entries, the researchers concluded that it was the small progresses that made people go on and look forward to the next workday.

Paul Stanley’s problems were big but instead of taking one giant leap towards progress, he took small baby steps towards it and overcame the bullying that he faced because of his deformity and deafness. Stanley didn’t go to psychologists for a therapy for bullying. Neither did he switch schools or indulge in self-sympathy. Instead he overcame his problem by growing his hair long so that they would cover his deformed ear and grabbed a place on the school choir. This was just the beginning. Today he is a part of a very successful band that has captured many hearts all over the world.