I had a very interesting chat with business firm owner Lloyd Claycomb recently about success and what it means to different people. We hear the word success a lot when people are trying to map out their future. Just recently I was giving a talk to some college kids and the topic came up about what they saw as the goal in life. The resounding response to this question was ‘success’ but few of the kids who answered actually specified what they consider success to be.
The fact of the matter is that if you don’t know what your idea of success is then you can never possibly measure it and therefore you can never actually achieve it. If you want success but aren’t sure what kind then here are some of the definitions which people use to describe success.
Personal Success
Many people need to remember that success is not just about what you do in your work life, it is also very much about what you do in life itself and many people consider success to be finding a life partner and having a good family. This is not as easy as it sounds and in actual fact whilst many people are out there searching for success that comes with their career, they are losing the opportunity of being a successful family person.
Career Success
Career success can be defined in two ways, the first is getting the job that you have dreamed of, the second is rising to the very top of the profession which you have chosen, both can occur at the same time. In order to achieve career success you will need to have your heart set on a particular position or profession and do all that you can to achieve it. This may take sacrifice and years of work but success is not something that ever comes easily and this is as true in terms of career success as it is in any other definition.
Financial Success
When most people talk about success, they are generally referring to the size of their bank balance and think that all definitions of success involve earning or having a vast amount of money. There is nothing materialistic or vain about wanting this kind of success and if it is the life that you want and the success that you want then you should go after it. Bra in mind that gaining a fortune is not going to be easy and like with other paths to success you will be faced with challenging moments. With that being said, if it is what you want then you should give everything you have to finding a way to achieve it either through luck, hard work or blood and tears.
It is important that you understand what success actually means to you so that you understand what you need to do in order to achieve it and also that you can have some measure of whether or not you have been successful in your efforts.
