WHAT IS SUCCESS?
Success is when you reach your aim or purpose. Those who are successful have achieved their greatest desires in their life and career. While many people define success as being wealthy or famous, there is no single way to determine whether someone is successful.
What’s important is that you have your own definition of success and are actively working towards your goals. Throughout your life and career, what success means to you is likely to change. Trying to accomplish more is a lifelong journey that requires purpose and focus.
Success is a concept that is different for every person. Whether it means having a great career, a home or a family, success is something everyone strives to achieve. It makes you feel proud, it gives you excitement, and it lets you know you have made an impact in a competitive world.
Success is not something you attain without putting in the effort, however. It is a mindset you must adopt to accomplish your goals and grow as a person, and it takes hard work. In this article, we explain what it can mean to be successful and discuss tips to help you in your journey to success.
HOW DO YOU DEFINE SUCCESS?
Before you can define success for yourself, you should make a list of what success looks like to you and your family. Then follow up with actionable steps you can take to achieve that success. For example, if you see success in an unfulfilled talent like writing, then potential steps might include implementing daily or weekly writing goals to nuture it.
There is no right or wrong way to be successful, but there are steps you can take to become more successful based on your definition.
Those in latter stages of their careers may find that they have gained wisdom throughout the years. Having wisdom means that you posses experience, knowledge and good judgement. By gaining all kinds of career experiences, you can gain new insights and life lessons. They will make you more successful.
HOW TO DEFINE SUCCESS FOR YOURSELF
Follow these steps when defining success for yourself:
1. Reflect on your accomplishments
When defining success for yourself, think about your previous accomplishments. Determine why you consider these feats to be achievements. By taking a moment to reflect on your accomplishments, you can figure out your values and what is important to you. Ask yourself the following questions:
• How did this accomplishment make me feel?
• Why did I care about working toward this goal?
• Would I want to work toward similar goals in the future?
• How do my accomplishments impact my life?
• How do my accomplishments impact others?
2. Go beyond social norms
Rather than letting society define success for you, determine what you think matters. When constantly striving toward other’s expectations, you are forgetting to focus on your own wants and needs. While some people may see money as success, others may find things like creative freedom or a flexible lifestyle more important.
3. Think big and small
Think of career success as a multi-level system. You can work toward all kinds of goals throughout your career to achieve different levels of success. For instance, if you complete all of your tasks on time, you could say that you had a successful day. If you got a major promotion, you could say you had a successful year. By focusing on both short-term and long term goals, you can find continuous success. Even breaking your larger goals into many smaller ones makes it much easier for you to stay on track toward reaching your goals.
4. Make a plan of action
Once you decide what success looks like to you, figure out how you’re going to start working toward your achievements. By writing down a list of steps you need to complete, you can be a bit more realistic about what you can accomplish.