The Secret to Success

Recently I was having a chat with a fellow entrepreneur and she brought up a very important topic, "What is the secret to success?" At the time, I couldn't think of an appropriate answer. I went on about my day, but the comment kept popping up in my head; What exactly is the secret to success? What exactly is success? Am I successful? Who is successful? To figure that out, I decided to do my research on success itself.



Success is defined as getting or achieving wealth, respect, or fame. In that sense, I can't exactly say that I'm very successful. I'm neither wealthy or famous, and I don't believe I'm substantially respected (due to the not being rich or famous part.) Could wealth and fame really be the only success in life? Lingering on the idea of success in life, I read articles about success. Some defined their success based on their accomplishments, some defined their success based on how many beach homes they owned, and some based their success around the celebrities they hang out with (we are back at wealth and fame here.) And then I saw a humbling status update written by a stranger. She mentioned how she wasn't particularly proud of her prestige lacking job, her car was a joke, and her house was a mess. What she said next struck me as genius. "but none of that matters, because when I look into the eyes of my children, I see all of my success." That simple statement made me realize something about success. Success does not have to be measured by how many yachts you own or how many zeros are on your current bank statement. Success can be measured by more humble means, it can be defined individually.

I look around at my modest home, my small business, my handsome husband, and my amazing friends and family and I can understand what success means. I am successful as a wife, I have been successful in running my business for the past 4 years, and I am successful in maintaining lasting relationships with amazing people. My perspective has changed and I now think about success on my own terms. It doesn't matter how much money you have, what kind of car you drive, or how famous you are. The Secret to Success is to view success on your own scale, not someone else's. I feel content in my own world of success. I am surrounded by love, laughter, and beauty. My secret is that I will no longer weigh my success against another's.

Reflect on the success in your life and enjoy your humble success as much as the wealthiest man enjoys his!