> Oh, to Be Successful!!

Saturday, September 17, 2005

Oh, to Be Successful!!

Success, what exactly does it mean to have success or be successful?

With the plethora of information available, from websites to books written on how to achieve the greatest success, it is something that often evades and even causes angst for many people. But why?

It’s not uncommon for people to equate success with the car one drives, the house someone lives in, the level of education achieved, the clothes worn… the list is endless. The bottom line...it is too common to equate success with money and material objects. Heck, I even grew up in a culture where the message was the more you had the more successful you were.

WRONG!!

Yep, that’s right; I am telling you that success does not have to be about how much money you make. Success is about who you are as a person and the things you bring to this world. It’s living your life to the best of your ability that makes you successful.

To share a personal story with you…

I have, for years, struggled with the pressure that I should and need to be making six figures in order to prove that I am successful. As I said, I grew up with the message that to prove your success you have to have the cash in the bank.

Frankly, the pressure became so great that I completely forgot my focus, my purpose, and my ability to fully love what I do. It was awful! I let others dictate to me what it meant for me to be successful rather defining it for myself.

Then one day the light bulb went on. I finally came to realize that being successful meant so much more than about making money. It was then that my whole focus and direction changed.

Now, for me, success it is not about having a six figure coaching practice, it’s about living my life with passion and doing what I truly love to the best of my ability… it’s about...

being kind to others ...

putting a smile on someone's face...

making a positive difference with action and deed ...

being a good mother, a genuine and caring friend, a loving significant other, and supportive daughter.

Realizing this, everything has started falling into place. The pressure is gone… it's as if someone lifted a huge elephant off my chest.

YOU are a Success!

Are you feeling that pressure right now? Are you questioning your own success? If so, I would like to offer the following recommendations.

1) Don’t let anyone define success for you! (It is the easiest thing to do, especially when we are surrounded by all sorts of messages.) Think about what’s most important to you, what you consider success, and let that be your definition and guide.

2) Write down five ways in which you would like your success to be measured, ways that are above and beyond the material measurements. Please feel free to share what you have written right here.

I will be willing to bet that from your own discoveries, you are a HUGELY successful person!! Just remember, success does NOT have to be about fancy watches, designer shoes, and expensive cars. Success is about you and all that you do to make your world a better place.

Until next time, enjoy your success and be well…

Pam

Posted by Pam at 5:49:44 PM in Creating Change (93) | Permalink | Comments (2)