Wednesday, February 17, 2010

Success

What is success measured by? Is it the work you do and the type of accomplishments on your resume? Is it having a loving family with strong, unwavering relationships? Is it getting out of bed in the morning? Or maybe it could be, not being afraid of failure and the difficulty of pursuing of your dreams?

There seems to be more questions than answers when it comes to success. Even if one accomplishes all their goals in every way, would their life be a complete success? Or perhaps, success is having a complete life. Maybe, all it takes is moving. Moving along to the beat of your own drum, down the road you choose, and the streams you decide to swim in. Maybe success is simply being proud of who you are, no matter what you've done or how it compares to any type of measurement. Measuring success piles on the criteria to which you criticize and judge yourself.

Then again, this criteria and overall push can help you feed off ambition's hunger and allow you to reach high goals. This is once again creating a type movement we all uncontrollably long for, because without motion (physically, emotionally or spiritually) we may become stagnant within a bubble of emptiness.

But can one trust this hunger to succeed, and implicitly let it decide our lives? No. Instead, you can acknowledge it as a part of your life's path. This allows you to discover that you, yourself, have the power to create your own success. It becomes clear that success can be anything, because it is defined by you. Then, success is simply living your life.

5 comments:

  1. Try not to become a man of success but a man of value. -Albert Einstein

    I think that finding out what you value in life, and making choices that reflect those values, is part of living your life successfully.

    Recognizing when those values change, grow, or falter is something different....wisdom perhaps?

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  2. Thanks Jacqueline, I loved your comment!

    I think that when you recognize that those values change and grow, you do become wise to your own needs. You understand that there can always be change, and are not afraid to follow it home - to your self. By being in touch with who you are, and who you are transforming to be, you open the gateway to living with your true and honest self. The wisdom to observe and notice these changes is to succeed.

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  3. Success
    By Ralph Waldo Emerson

    To laugh 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.
    ,

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  4. Wonderful poem. Thanks for sharing!

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  5. I have to correct the first line of the poem. It should read...
    To laugh often and much...
    Very glad that you like this poem. I often read it when I feel the need to.
    Society's definition of success is skewed. Small acts of kindness are real and attainable by all of us.

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