What is Success? Is it directly proportional to happiness or is it simply achieving everything that you ever desired? Success is within the mind of a person and it means different things to different people (Knoch 376). It takes different definitions with different interpretations. Many hold the idea that success is having great amount of wealth or holding the most senior position in our career.
Some try to define it in terms of personal achievement such as sports awards and good grades in school. However, scholars and non-scholars argue that success is about being famous and known all over the world like president Obama. In general, success takes different forms. Gandhi is considered to be successful yet he had three sets of clothes. On the other hand, Bill Gates is also successful while he is worth over $50 billion.
Success is the act of getting or attaining a position, honors or a fortune. In fact, it is the fruitful result you obtain after an attempt. According the Oxford Dictionary, success is “the attainment of fame, wealth and or social status.” Success itself is achieving your desired goal thus having a favorable outcome. Thus, it is the attainment of an action at a specified period. The actions attained could be your career, financial or personal goals.
Knoch asserts that to be successful really mean to work on the goals you set and achieve them (382). As a result, it is not success if what you have has just been handed to you on a silver platter. An individual must have the determination to work harder and make sure that things are accomplished in the right manner.
Success has to be sought after with the desire for improvement and achievement. It should be obtained with integrity given that this creates character and defines who you are in the larger community. Such an occurrence makes success a peace of mind that will be as a result of self-satisfaction that one did his or her best. Nuckles and Renkl claim that you have to be the best you can be in what you are doing with your passion driving you in the direction of the goals (247).
Success can also imply living according to your values. From Nuckles and Renkl study, this means living the way you want and enjoying every single minute of it (253). According to Warren Buffet, success implies having what you want and wanting what you have. That is, you have the people you love, and love you just the same. It involves knowing who you are including your strengths and your weakness. This helps you to work on your strengths to better yourself. Thus, you love yourself as you are and finding joy in what you are doing and how you are doing it.
Additionally, success can also be viewed as never giving up. With each failure, you continue on without losing enthusiasm knowing that in the end you achieve your desired results. The more you become more practically and actively engaged in your goal, the more successful you will feel. Patience is of essence in success. You have to be willing to tolerate delay or suffering without being upset and with great optimism in your heart. Each delay is seen as a step forward to something better.
Success is also defined in relation to your connection with others. How you relate to others is as important in a successful life as wealth and achieving ones goals. In order to be successful you need the help of friends and family. Each person adds something to your life on your way to success. They provide love, guidance and support in making you successful. How you come to relate to this people after your achievements will determine your level of success. The inference involves showing them the respect they deserve, spending time with them and being able to give them gifts once in a while. Therefore, one must learn to treat others well just as you would like to be treated.
According Nuckles and Renkl, to live a successful life includes being able to give back to the society (243). Such level of success could be through volunteering time, and energy to do good causes in a community. For instance, one may choose to help in charities by making a donation or even starting your own charitable organization. The action will not only bring satisfaction and happiness, but will also benefit others. An individual do not have to attain an immense amount of wealth to be able to help others. If you do what is right, you will always be happy.
Finally, to be successful in life is to have self-confidence. Being in this state appears to be the backbone of all personal success. You need to trust in yourself, your abilities, judgments and qualities as well as willing to shoulder responsibilities and being accountable. Anything is achievable if you believe in yourself (Knoch 380). It makes you approach any problem as a challenge. Self-confidence makes others believe in you and gives you stability in every area of your life. Self-confidence helps an individual in believing in other people to be successful.
In conclusion, a successful life can only be obtained through self-contentment, and knowing that you have everything you need for the present situation. Success can be realized through pursing your dreams, maintaining healthy relationships with everyone around you and giving back to the society. You should be able to enjoy the little things in life. The level of success is determined by how much joy one feels and being able to laugh more often.
Works Cited
Knoch, Ute. “Diagnostic Assessment of Writing: A Comparison of two Rating Scales.” Language Testing 26.2 (2009): 275 -304. Print.
Nuckles, Matthias, and Alexander Renkl. “Expertise Reversal Effects in Writing-to-Learn.” Instructional Science: An International Journal of the Learning Sciences 38.3 (2010): 237–258. Print.