What is success?
To laugh often and much;
to win the respect of intelligent people
and the affection of children;
to earn the appreciation of honest critics
and endure the betrayal of false friends;
to appreciate beauty;
to find the best in others;
to leave the world a bit better,
whether by a healthy child, a garden patch,
or a redeemed social condition;
to know even one life has breathed easier
because you have lived.
This is to have succeeded!RALPH WALDO EMERSON
If we don’t define what success means to us personally, we run the risk of only emulating other people’s definitions of success. While for some, expensive cars and houses may be part of their definition of success, for others, it’s freedom, having enough time for their family, or location independence. It is not always easy to separate society’s definition of success from our own, especially because advertising is trying to sell us so many ideas about what success should look like.
It’s certainly worth taking our time thinking about what success really means to us. Otherwise, we might be very busy chasing someone else’s dreams and success symbols, which don’t mean anything to us and won’t make us happier.
So what does success look like for you?
