Friday, October 26, 2012

Meaning of Success


The first time I ever really confronted the question about success was at my high school graduation.  Our seventh grade history teacher was giving the final speech and picked the topic of what really defines success. This seemed like a fitting topic given that so many of us were sitting up on that stage with many questions floating in our minds; is going to college successful?, is going into the workforce successful?, is graduating high school successful?  Depending on who you ask, you'll probably receive a different answer, however, I want to make the point that these are all successes.  In my own definition, success is overcoming something difficult.  If high school was easy for you, then it probably wasn't a success.

In the world of personal finance, success for you might be having a balanced budget or maybe paying off your credit card.  These seemingly small instances can have profound effects on your morale and well-being.

In your own personal life, maybe success is going on a date and having it go really well?  Maybe success is finding a place to live in a new unfamiliar city, or even more fundamentally, finding a job.  On a side note, someone once told me that you will have a whole file cabinet full of all the jobs you didn't get, but all you need is the one you did get.  Success is most likely achieving that job.

Traditionally, success has been about having that mcmansion on that dead-end street, having a few kids, and a happy spouse.  This ideal, while being rather nice, is simply too naive when it comes to the notion of success.  Success is struggling to achieve something, putting in the time, and then finally reaching that goal.  It's that feeling of knowing you have finally accomplished something that seemed so distant when you started.

For me....well, earlier this week, I found that I most likely have type 1 diabetes, and success is going to just be maintaining healthy blood sugar levels.  If I can do that, I'll be successful.

Wonderful Moment of the Day: Having a wonderful wife!

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