Being successful is almost a universal goal. Almost everyone I talk to says they want to be successful. People often describe others as being successful when they’ve gotten a good job. Not being successful is one of the greatest complaints I hear from people looking back on their lives. They say “I wish I was successful”. These same people might have a nice home and nice car, yet they still do not see themselves as successful. The problem is not that they are not successful. The problem comes from their definition of success.
There are many definitions to the word ‘success’. Success is relative. Success really just means that you are reaching your goals. In order to be successful you must have realistic goals. If your goal is to make the most money, have the best job, have the prettiest wife, have the nicest car, have a boat, have happy children, and being the envy of everyone you know, you need to set new goals. You will never be successful because even if you have these things there will be something you don’t have or someone else will have something better. I don’t define success as “keeping up with the Joneses”. Material things do not equal happiness.
A better set of goals would be to complete your degree, get a dependable job that keeps you comfortable, have a happy marriage, to be spiritually secure, and be able to help others. This is attainable and measureable. The only way to measure success is to have well defined goals that are realistic.
Give yourself realistic goals, but not goals that are too easy to reach. Don’t define success as something that is easy to reach, but something that is worth reaching.