Success Is What You Think It Is - How Different People Define Success

Nowadays, there is a great emphasis on being successful. Everyone is now under pressure to achieve some sort of success. However, not many people know what success means or how to measure it. That's why it can be confusing and hard to evaluate your own success. There is also the fact that different people have different ideas about success. So, to help you define and achieve success, let's see what success really is.

Different Types of Success

Success isn't just one thing that you need to achieve or else. Not everyone wants the same things in life, which means not everyone has the same idea of success. Below are some of the most common types of success.

Financial Success

Many people try to achieve success through their finances. For them, money isn't just about being able to afford certain things - it is also about social status. The more money you have, the more accepted you will be in certain social circles.

Additionally, money is an indicator that you have achieved success in your professional life. You obviously have some skills that you know how to use at the right place and at the right time. Finally, money can make your life and well-being more secure, as you will have the means to afford a better quality of life, healthy food, and medical services.

Professional Success

Professional success is important for many people, as it is a reflection of their talents, skills, and hard work. A good career is making us feel fulfilled, proud, and accomplished. Most of the time, professional success comes hand in hand with financial success, but not necessarily. Some professions aren't financially lucrative, but they can still bring a sense of success.

For example, high school teachers, unfortunately, aren't earning much, but many of them consider themselves successful. Their success lies in the fact that they have taught countless young people, inspired them, and helped them overcome certain adversities. Many teachers are the sole reason why some young people have chosen the right paths in their lives. Isn't that a great success?

This applies to everything you want to do. Regardless of whether you are a construction worker, a nurse, a talk show host, a banker, a waiter, or a software engineer - you can achieve professional success by doing your work the best you can.

Family Success

Lots of people are finding joy in their families, and they are considering that their biggest success. People often forget how hard it is to ensure your family is happy and healthy. We take those things for granted while so many people are struggling. So, if you have a loving family, with everyone being happy and healthy, it is a huge success. Of course, even if your family isn't picture-perfect, it doesn't mean you are a failure. Keep doing your best, and you can still consider it a success.

Emotional Success

While different people have different ambitions and definitions of success, most of them are trying to be successful when it comes to relationships, including romantic ones, as well as relationships with friends, family, colleagues, and all other people. These relationships can make or break our emotional lives. Even if you don't think emotional success is important, it affects all other aspects of your life.

People who go through some sort of emotional turmoil are having a hard time focusing on other aspects of their lives as well. This, in turn, reduces their chances of being successful at work, with money, and in other areas. That's why building stable emotional connections is another type of success - it isn't always easy to achieve, but it will make your life much better.

Personal Success

In order to lead a fulfilling life and achieve a high level of personal well-being, one needs to put in a lot of work. Personal success comes when all of the aspects of your life that you find important are satisfactory, at the least. When that happens, you feel whole and at balance with the world around you.

We could maybe even take it one step further and say that personal success is the highest level of success, as it includes financial success, family success, emotional success, professional success, and all other types of success. Of course, this isn't a checklist that you must fulfill.

It is you who defines what kind of success is important to you and what would make you feel accomplished and proud of yourself. So, even if you haven't achieved something - for example, financial success, that doesn't mean you haven't achieved personal success.

Make Your Own Definition of Success

Now, what about your personal definition of success? You see, if you follow someone else's definition of success, you might get disappointed. The only true success is what you consider to be a success. If you aren't interested in money, then financial success isn't relevant for you. Or, if you don't want to start your own family one day - that's perfectly fine, and you aren't a failure if you don't do it.

Instead of trying to fit someone else's definition of success, you should come up with your own unique definition of what will make you successful. What are your goals? What do you want to accomplish in your life? Work on accomplishing these goals, not someone else's.

Learn How to Recognize and Measure Success

Now, the question is, how can you know when you achieve success? Research suggests that people are more likely to focus on objective goals. But what if your goals aren't objective and easy to measure? Well, you can still make your goals specific and measurable enough, even when they are more on the subjective side.

For example, maybe you want to achieve more success in your family relationships. You can try to spend more time with your parents, siblings, or your spouse and kids. If you only see your parents once in two months, try to see them every month. If you don't spend enough time with your kids, plan a new activity with them every weekend. It will create lasting memories for them while strengthening your bond.

These are just some examples, but they can help you measure success. Even for such subjective matters, you can always identify your current situation, then come up with your ideal situation, and think of the steps you will need to take to reach the ideal situation. By taking these steps and accomplishing your goals, you will recognize that you have succeeded and achieved better relationships and more happiness.

When it comes to career and finances, they are much easier to evaluate and measure than happiness. You can always compare your earnings from the current and past year to see if your financial situation is better. Or, if you are after a career success, you can think of your dream position and then work hard until you get it. You will know you succeeded when you reach that position. Enjoy your success, and plan your next steps.

Why You Should Never Envy Others

When you look at certain successful people, you can't help but wonder why they are more successful than you. It's completely natural, but it isn't productive. You see, comparing yourself too much to other people will lead to low self-esteem and the feeling of envy. You should never compare yourself to others and envy them for several reasons.

First of all, other people may be leading seemingly perfect lives, but you can never know what's beneath the surface. They might be highly successful in their careers or have a lot of money, but that doesn't mean they are happy and satisfied. You might even be overestimating their wealth and success.

Still, even if they are just as successful as you think, or even more, you still shouldn't envy them. Sure, you can take them as an inspiration for where you want to be or as a lesson on what to do (or what not to do). Be happy about their success and focus on yourself. You are just as good and capable as them, and your success will come eventually.

How to Build Long-Term Success

To be able to make a positive change in your life and build long-term success, you need to be strategic, organized, and wise. Here are the steps you will need to take.

Adapt Your Mindset

First, adopt a growth mindset. This mindset will allow you to learn and grow while also embracing the challenges ahead of you and showing resilience even when things aren't great. It is also your reminder that successful people weren't born that way - they made themselves successful.

Unlike the fixed mindset theory, which believes you were either born capable of certain things or not, the growth mindset highlights the power of learning. Even if you don't possess all the abilities that you need, you can still learn them.

Define Your Goals

Next, you need to define your own goals - goals that will lead you to success. Make sure these goals are SMART:

• Specific
• Measurable
• Attainable
• Relevant
• Time-bound

By setting your goals this way, you will ensure their fulfillment within reasonable time frames.

Make Your Strategy

We already told you that you need to be strategic when working towards your goals. After defining each goal, make a clear strategy on how you plan to make that dream come true. Basically, come up with individual activities as steps that will lead you to your goals.

Learn and Adapt

Once you start implementing your strategy and working toward your goals, you will probably notice that a different approach could be better for some things. That doesn't mean your strategy was bad - it needs some adaptation. No matter how good your strategy is, you will need to make some tweaks and improvements, depending on the situation.

Conclusion

The road to success and self-discovery isn't easy, and it is different for everyone. After all, we all have different opinions on what success really is, and we are all right. That's why you should plan and measure your success based on your opinions and beliefs, not on someone else's. So, make your own definition of success, set your goals, define your strategy, and work hard until you make it!

Frequently Asked Questions

Is Failure Part of Success?

Yes, even though it sounds like a coping mechanism, failure is truly a part of success. You can't truly succeed in something if you never failed and learned from the failure. And, even if success comes to you without failure, how will you appreciate it? How would you enjoy success if you had never had to endure failure? Just like you need the darkness to better appreciate the light, that's how you need to fail to better enjoy your success.

Can Success Be Achieved Without Hard Work?

The basic answer to this question is no, but it is a complex subject. Hard work is necessary for success, but it's not always enough. One also needs certain talents, a bit of luck, and to know how to use them. There is also the saying "work smart, not hard," which means you should work hard, but you also need to be strategic about it.

How Can I Balance Success in My Career and Personal Life?

This is a problem that many people are facing, especially women with children. It's not easy to strike that balance when both careers and our personal lives demand our immediate attention. Still, through proper organization, setting boundaries, and managing stress, we can find that balance and enjoy success in all aspects of our lives.