By What does success mean to you? For the longest time I thought there was only one definition of success made up of 3 components: money, location on the corporate ladder and “respect”. As I’ve gotten older, and dare I say wiser, my view of success has morphed. My definition of success is more about ‘Did I add value?’ ‘Did my solution meet or exceed client expectations?’ and ‘Do I have work/life balance?’.
4 am on Saturday morning found me standing line at the Budapest airport, waiting to check in and drop my suitcase for my long journey home. I struck up a conversation with the gentleman in front of me. “Steve” had been in the Canadian Air Force, enjoying a nice career. But as many of you may know, military careers typically involve moving every few years. His teenager was struggling immensely. Steve put his career aspirations aside and put family first. He left the Air Force and settled into a position that wouldn’t have the family moving constantly. Long story short, his son is now a successful international attorney. Money isn’t everything. Prestige isn’t everything. Having a seat at the table isn’t everything. You realize what’s important to you and what you’re willing to sacrifice of yourself in pursuit of this ephemeral ‘corporate success’.
And NOT about comparisons to others, which is, quite frankly, rather unhealthy and a no win situation.
My journey won’t be the same as yours. And by not comparing, I can celebrate your successes without envy.
Our definition of success can and should be different as we are different people with different aspirations. Recently I took a trip to Eastern Europe. On a tour of Belgrade, the guide noted that the city had been destroyed 42 times…and they rebuilt it again and again. So for Belgrade, the definition of success might simply be that the city is still here.
