I have been thinking about success. So many of my friends whom I would deem successful don’t see themselves as such? Artist, playwright, authors, entrepreneurs, bloggers—each highly respected by their peers yet still unable not define themselves as successful. Do you fall in that category? For you, is success elusive? If so, have you every wondered why?
Obviously success is a personal standard. Merriam-Webster defines success as “a degree or measure of succeeding, a favorable or desired outcome.” If you are not feeling successful, perhaps you need to redefine what success means to you and most important how you will measure that success.
What does success mean to you? Is it having a certain number of books published? Having a wildly popular blog with lots of reader interaction? Financial security? Respect from your peers? If you don’t know what success means, how can you recognize it or measure it?
Depending on your point of view, quotes and quips about success can be motivational or irrelevant. It all depends on how you define success for yourself.
“Success is not about resources. It’s about how resourceful you are with what you have.” Tony Robbins
“Success is liking yourself, liking what you do, and liking how you do it.” Maya Angelou
“To succeed in life you need three things: a wishbone, a backbone, a funny bone.” Reba McEntire
There is a plethora of books and training programs to help you define and measure success. The problem with these is that they are someone else’s concept of success, someone else’s ways of measuring it, and they seldom define what success feels like.
Five steps to feeling successful
- Define what success means to you. This means establishing goals that are measurable and realistic. Unlike Superman who could leap tall buildings, you will need a ladder to get to the top. Make each rung on the ladder a measurable goal.
- Share what success means to you with others. Voicing it makes it more real, more attainable; it also trains the subconscious to recognize success.
- Understand that success is not necessarily linear. You make strides forwards and have setbacks. Just don’t give up. Believe in yourself and keep moving up on that ladder.
- Don’t confuse success with happiness. No amount of money, toys, or acclaim can bring happiness. Happiness is a feeling that you create for yourself; so is the feeling of success.
- Teach yourself what it feels like to be successful. Celebrate the little achievements. Don’t deny yourself these accolades. Relishing in the minor accomplishments teaches you what success feels like, so that when you do finally achieve that lofty goal, you will recognize that sense of accomplishment as success.
How do you define success? What does it feel like to you?
