Defining Success in Your Life as a Young Person

The notions of "succeeding" and "success", have been around as long as mankind, and current definitions have endured for at least three generations, namely for ourselves, for our parents, and for our grandparents.

Fifty years ago The Concise Oxford Dictionary defined success as "...good fortune, time well spent, triumph, winner, champion, accomplishment of end aimed at, and attainment of wealth or fame or position..."

Thirty-five years ago Roget’s Thesaurus provided the following similar terms to success, namely "...progress, advancement, improvement, betterment, ascent, promotion..."

Today, if you search the Web, you will see very similar contemporary themes for success, namely "...an occurrence which attains its intended outcome, an achievement, prosperity, celebrity and fame..."

Three Key Points Emerge!

First, Success in Life can mean many things in different ways to different people. It's not just about making stacks of money. It may be about simply achieving to the best of your ability.
It may be about making the most of your life, not only for yourself, but also in terms of your impact on the lives of others.

It may mean a combination of success in work life, family life, social life, and in life at various stages from birth through to maturity.

We only have one life. We should therefore look upon Success in Life holistically, in other words, in a total sense, of which work and career naturally form important parts -- after all, we all have to earn a living.

Keywords which come to mind when we think about Success in Life, include (in random order):

•Health, career, wealth, happiness, security, recognition, satisfaction, glory, fame.
•Contribution, achievement, excellence, fulfillment, sport, entertainment, academics.
•Entrepreneur, service to others, pursuit of interests, use of abilities, family and friends.
•Leadership, support of a cause, caring and sharing, winning, designing, creating.

...the list goes on and on!

Now think of some words of your own.

Second, success is more about something that is intended, rather than just happening by accident (although of course it can happen by accident). By this I mean that success, by whatever definition, is something invariably aimed at.

In my study of 100 world famous successful people, 85% of the successful people I studued, were ambitious or driven self starters when they were young people. For them, success was more about something that was intended, rather than happening just by accident.

Third, if comparable notions about success have been around for three generations, then young people, their parents, and even their grandparents have a lot in common when it comes to the subject of success, suggesting that family influence, as discovered in my research, is likely to be an important element underpinning Success in Life.

Indeed, 65 % of the successful people I studied, benefited from positive family influence when they were young people, be this in the form of their parents acting as role models, or through their specific advice.

Two More Important Points About Success In Life.

First, it's important not to let the desire to achieve Success in Life become so all-consuming, that ethics are breached, laws are ignored, and consequences for others are adverse. We are all aware of the expression "power corrupts" -- don't let the pursuit and attainment of success corrupt you!

Second, there is the saying that you have to "make it by thirty ". This is not the case. While some people may make it by thirty, many take a lot longer, as was the case in my research of one hundred world-famous successful people.

What's Your Definition Of Success In Your Life?

I now encourage you to try to define for yourself what you mean by Success in Life. Clearly this will likely have something to do with work and career, and importantly, something to do with the rest of your life -- after all, you only have one life and you need to make the most of it!

Before you do this, you are well advised to review the bios of some of my research audience of 100 world famous successful people, available free of charge via my website www.usucceedinlife.com

And remember, defining success in your life as a young person, is unlikely to be a one-shot deal. You will likely need to revisit your definition quite a few times, until you are satisfied with your efforts.

Good luck in this invaluable endeavour!