We talk about the word success using it as part of our lives when for the most part it means different things to different people. The dictionary refers to success as meaning achievement, accomplishment, victory, triumph.
Albert Einstein was said to have quoted
“Strive not to be a success, but rather to be of value.”
One way of looking at success is looking at it as a feeling, and how we feel about our accomplishments. Another person’s success cannot be measured the same as our feelings of success. Others may look at us and think we are successful, but we view ourselves as being a ‘work in progress’ or unsuccessful because we haven’t achieved what we are striving for.
To be successful we need to have a plan, with goals and actions to enable us to achieve our vision. To do this we need to prepare for the job ahead. What do we need to do to prepare to even start on our road to success? Who might be able to help us? Who can I use as a role model to learn from? If we don’t prepare properly for what we want, we set unachievable goals which is a sure way of failing.
Confucius said,
“Success depends upon previous preparation, and without such preparation, there is sure to be failure.”
There is a saying that a wish is a goal without a plan. Either way, the only thing standing between us and our dream is our belief in ourselves!
If it’s not a lack of belief in ourselves, then what other reason stops us from being successful? One reason is lack of action, or not getting started. In this case, we should be wondering if the success we strive for is really what we want if we can’t even be bothered to get started. To enable us to be a success we need to think about how we might get there. We need to take risks, measured risks, and take opportunities when they are presented to us, which does mean stepping outside of our comfort zone into the unknown.
