The question is often asked: "What does it mean to be a success?"
The answer to this question is often problematic because it attempts to generalize success as something that should be the same for everyone. In trying to find the answer, attention is diverted to the obvious success stories of general wealth and fame. This kind of success in itself if is not bad, but it deprives many people of the opportunity to succeed in their own right.
The question should be: "What does success mean to me as a person?"
This question implies that success is not the same for everyone and that it is determined for each person individually. The process of determining personal success makes use of two of the most unique human abilities we posses. They are self-analysis and imagination.
The results of the expedition to define personal success, is to determine the personal legacy you want to leave after your time on this earth is over. It is during this process that the human endowments of imagination and self analysis come into play. Start off with self analysing your needs, expectations, strengths and weaknesses. Write them down to give you a visual representation of your analysis results. Now imagine how you use your strengths and abilities to fulfill your needs and meet your expectations. Also imagine how you see your weaknesses diminish. Imagine how your ideal life looks like.
Lastly write down again your flight of fancy. This will become your success formula and the blueprint for achieving your goals and making your dream a reality. Keep this document where you can often review it and to see how you make progress in growing closer to your dream.
Creating Balance in Success
In determining the success of your image that you dreamed up about yourself, it is essential to create balance. It is essential find ways to maintain a balance between the various elements that make up your success formula.
It is not inherently bad to make lots of money; I think this will form part of 90% of people's success formulas. However, it must be balanced with providing a loving home for your children or being a faithful spouse. Creating balance in personal success creates a framework within which you will leave your personal legacy. Success in one area of your life, at the expense of other areas, is not living a successful life.
Through creating balance in success, you create an active feedback mechanism to provide continuous feedback on how you are progressing in making your success image a reality. Balance allows you to continually assess your success or lack thereof. Through focussing on creating balance in success, you can measure your progress objectively and not succumb to the often present feeling of a lack of success. By consistently applying your unique ability to analyse and imagine your ideal future with a sense of creating balance your preferred picture of how you want your life to be can become a reality.