Pick One Definition of Success That Speaks Directly to Your Heart
Ten definitions of success by ten successful people
Do most of us know the definition of success? Discovering how others define it may help you to refine your version of it.
I believe it is a distinct feeling — it changes with time and level of our personal growth. Everyone has a different take on success. You may not like how someone else defines it. But the important thing is to feel the joy when you taste your brand of success.
In today’s world, your ability to let your innermost self feel the joy is the key to achieving your dreams. The pleasure you derive from your impossible goals is what drives you to work hard.
Find out which one of these definitions speaks directly to your heart:
Warren Buffett
“I measure success by how many people love me.”
Richard Branson
His definition has nothing to do with money:
“Too many people measure how successful they are by how much money they make or the people that they associate with. In my opinion, true success should be measured by how happy you are.”
Winston Churchill
“Success is going from failure to failure without losing enthusiasm.”
Maya Angelou
“Success is, liking yourself, liking what you do, and liking how you do it.”
Oprah Winfrey
For Oprah, success means “How to be used in the greater service to life. Ask this question, and the answer will be returned and rewarded to you with fulfillment, which is the major definition of success, to me.”
Malcolm Forbes
“Failure is success if we learn from it.”
Arianna Huffington
She thinks that the definition of success needs to be modified. “To live the lives we truly want and deserve, and not just the lives we settle for, we need a Third Metric a third measure of success that goes beyond the two metrics of money and power, and consists of four pillars: well-being, wisdom, wonder, and giving.”
Woody Allen
“Eighty percent of success is showing up.”
Bob Proctor
“Reaching the goal is not success; success is moving toward the goal.”
Albert Einstein
“Try not to become a man of success, but rather try to become a man of value.”
Takeaway
You can brainstorm about your definition of success — write it down — and how it has changed over time.
These ten definitions help us see various perspectives on the idea of success, and we learn that:
- Only one of these definitions tells us that money is related to success.
- Only one definition says that the power over others is related to success.
- One says that happiness is a measure of success.
- Another one relates success to how many people love you.
- One says that success is mainly showing up for work.
- One definition tells us to learn from our failures.
- One says that completely accepting your self is success.
- One links success to maintaining your enthusiasm while facing challenges of life.
- Four definitions tell us that success is related to giving, serving, creating value, and winning the love of other people. It means that most of these definitions relate success with serving others in some way.
Now, which one do I like? I would mix Bob Procter and Einstein’s definitions. I think success is hidden in my journey. I believe that “Success is a feeling of active relaxation, both mental and physical. A warm and fuzzy aliveness that helps me to create something valuable for others.” For me, it is the only way to experience success every day.
Which one did you pick?