Food for Thought: (re)defining success

Success is often measured in terms of your professional career: how acknowledged you are by peers and seniors determines your success rate.

Also relevant is the amount of money you have, the things you buy with that money and how much secret envy you inspire in others.

The strange thing is that it’s not necessarily about how good you are in your work, but how impressed others feel by your efforts.

It’s not necessarily about how many lives you change, but how many people know your name.

But what if you fast forward to the end of your life, and you look back: what will make you feel you’ve lived a successful life?

I ask this question to many of my clients, so I feel pretty confident about guessing some of your answers:

You’ll look for the rate of success in the meaningful relations in your life, how much time you spend doing things you love. How healthy and vital you felt. And yes: the impact you’re leaving through the work you’ve done.

So for us, conscious, sensitive smart, people who have a tendency to be pulled into overthinking, comparing and the responsibility to make a difference, I suggest that it’s time to change our perception of success.

Redefining Success…

What if succes is no longer measured through your position at work, money & external validation and recognition, but instead is measured by things that actually impact how you view your life in retrospect?

And I’m not saying you can’t choose to be wealthy, I’m not saying your impact on others isn’t relevant. I’m not even saying that how others see you is something you shouldn’t be concerned with.

What I am saying though is that our current definition of success is out of date, and that it’s nowhere near complete when we look at what makes a successful life.

And I know we’re not living in a world yet, where this is common. And I know seeing succes this way will lead to some intense discussion, but I believe you & I are on the forefront of a change in perception that will – among other things – change our beliefs about what is success.

So instead of spending your energy of becoming successful in the eyes of the limited thinkers, what if you instead focus on building your life around your balanced star of success.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Rosalie Puiman is the founder of The Sovereign Leader and the author of The Mindful Guide to Conflict Resolution. She works with executives and founding teams to bring forth effective, impactful and purpose-driven success.

But what if you fast forward to the end of your life, and you look back: what will make you feel you’ve lived a successful life?

Redefining Success…

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