Success - how do you define it?

nuttychew · Aug 20, 2012, 10:56 AM

Just wondering what people consider "success" at life. I struggle with this daily, thinking of myself as a failure because I don't have a job I am "passionate" about, I don't have a family, I am not in a relationship, etc. I graduated college, went to graduate school for social work, and I work in Early Intervention. That's pretty much it. Oh and I ran a half-marathon. LOL.

Miswimmy1 · Aug 20, 2012, 03:20 PM

I think it is when you are truly satisfied with yourself and your actions. If you are content, then I think that is a success. If you hav learned some valuable life lessons, then I think it success. I also think when you learn to be content with who you are and be at peace with yourself is also success.

Aug 20, 2012, 06:04 PM

People take fulfilment from different things in life, for me just trying to be a kind and decent enough person is what i aim for but perhaps the nature of the human condition is that we're never fully satisfied - we always want more. I suppose the only option that leaves us with is to try and learn to feel more content with what we do have.

Timgt5 · Aug 22, 2012, 03:42 AM

Success has many facets, short and long term. As others have pointed out success must come on ones own terms, the feeling of fulfilment for the life you have. In the end you and only you are fit to judge yourself on whether you have or have not succeeded in life, everything around you then is just idle chatter.

Aug 22, 2012, 04:14 AM

i agree with what everyone else had said.

don't think their's anymore too it really

Fresia · 08:25 AM

I base success on learning from accomplishing things, daily. I will look to the steps I take moment by moment for daily living to act on using my own morals, values, and choices to make up my life and not trying to evaluate life as a whole to determine this. What matters is now, each moment. If I learn from something, even if it was something that could be considered a failure, then it was success and just another AFGRO (another friggin growth opportunity). If I fail to learn and especially repeat it, this is truly failure and success is not to be had. I can no longer think in terms of where my life should be or isn't, but only in how I want to live each day to judge my success.

ZilchHour · Aug 22, 2012, 08:39 AM

Great replies by all.

In my opinion, in addition to what has already been said, success could be seen as a multi-steps process. To the bare eye, it might be a failure for a seed to get burried in the ground and disappear forever but this temporary disappearance becomes a tall, green tree in a few years' time. Likewise, sometimes one or two generations of a family suffer and seem to be a failure when their sons and daughters accomplish and achieve bigger and better things.

If the seed of effort has been sown in the right grounds, the fruits of success shall bear one day!

purplecow · Aug 22, 2012, 10:27 AM

I think we have the ability to decide if we are successful or not. What makes one person successful may not another. I believe it is a sense of SELF satisfaction. Are you happy with where you are at, did you do your best to get where you are. These are the things I think apply to success.

eloquentdisaster · Aug 25, 2012, 10:50 PM

Success to doing what makes me happy, taking steps toward it, or learning from my mistakes that led me away from it.

whenwillitend · Aug 25, 2012, 10:58 PM

I agree with it being content. I mean, what else is there to strive for than happiness? Happiness is the ultimate goal. If you're happy, you have succeeded.