Tuesday, July 24, 2012

Success: What it Is & Isn’t



Success is defined in different ways by different people, but let’s talk about what most people agree “success” looks like.


Success Is:    knowing you did a good job during your day and had positive interactions with other people

Success Is:    looking forward to going home to your family and sharing yourself with them

Success Is:    knowing you have enough funds to pay this month’s bills and the bills that will arise in the future

Success Is:    knowing that your spiritual life is in order and that you have somewhere to turn when you hit a bump in the road


Success Isn’t:        running home and then hiding from your family because you’ve “had a hard day”

Success Isn’t:        having all the money in the world and then trying to figure out how to amass even more

Success Isn’t:        going to a worship service and creating your “to-do” list during it

Success Isn’t:        burning the candle at both ends, never having time to play or relax


In short, success is not always monetarily-related; you aren’t deemed “un-successful” if you don’t earn a six-figure salary.  Success is more than moving up a corporate ladder and it touches more than just your career.  It affects your marriage and family, your home life (finances, etc.), your spiritual life, and more.


Being successful is a balancing act.  One isn’t considered successful in life if s/he climbs the corporate ladder but has a home- or family-life that is in shambles.  One isn’t considered “successful” if s/he earns plenty of money to retire on, anticipating spending that retirement with family, only to find that his/her children are gone and disinterested in any family relationships by the time retirement is possible.


So is there one formula to be successful?  I think there is, and the components are:  positive thinking, the right skill set, the right philosophy, having direction, and having character.  All of these things make up a formula for success, and each of these things, if left out of the formula, will cause an individual to lack success in life.

Learn how to think “success”so that you are successful at whatever you choose to do.