Only You Can Define Your Definition of Success

Make Your Best Impression Blog   ·   May 14, 2009

Society has its own standard of success. Some people reach it and some don’t. Many who do reach it wonder what it was all for. Before you jump on society’s bandwagon learn to express what true success means to you.

Your goals in life stem from your personal beliefs about life. What fills you will joy and a sense of purpose? Answer these questions to get started on your personal definition of success.

Success Factors
Several different criteria go into determining a definition of success. There is:

• Personal experience
• Family Influence
• Emotions

Personal Experience

As a young child, maybe you saw your mother sewing clothing that was adored by others. But, she shied away from jumping in the spotlight and taking the credit. Her reward was not notoriety, but her clothing in the hands of someone who loved it.

That type of experience lets you know that success is more than money. Maybe those clothes netted a bit of mad money but the main reward was your mother’s talent well used. This is a far cry from someone who had another take credit for their work and vowed to never let that happen again. Their goals may be to get all of the recognition for themselves for every little thing that they do.

Family Influence

This goes along with personal experience. Our parents do occasionally drop pearls of wisdom into our laps (when we are not consumed with being angry teenagers). They teach us to turn the other cheek and help a person in need. All of these lessons roll into our philosophy of how we will search for success in our lives.

Achieving a goal for self satisfaction doesn’t involve money but it is no less a success. Climbing a mountain or learning to fly a plane actually take money but the return on your investment can’t be measured in currency.

Emotions

At one time or another you have been a slave to your emotions. We all have. Don’t let your feelings rule your life but use them to define your life. Use determination to keep you focused on your worthwhile goals no matter what the obstacles. This takes strength of mind.

Use joy to find the silver lining in every cloud. Just because one plan didn’t work to achieve your goal doesn’t mean that another one won’t pan out. Use what you learned to avoid future mistakes but keep moving towards that goal nonetheless.

Use anger to succeed at changing unfair practices. If it is your goal to do something for the benefit of mankind, let your feelings help you find a way to heal the hurts of this world using your special talents.

What success means to you is something only you can determine. Once you establish that parameter, let it guide you through all of the goals you set and strive to achieve in the future.

Remember we cannot let our past define us, but it can help us determine how we choose to live our future. You are the captain of your ship and your journey begins today.