Your,Success,Defined,Definitio DIY Your Success Is Defined by Your Definition of Success

When starting a new work at home business it is very easy to become consumed by it. We spend so much time trying to get the business up and running that we may end up becoming burned out and lose our motivation. There is so much to learn and Normal 0 false false false MicrosoftInternetExplorer4 /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable{mso-style-name:"Table Normal";mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0;mso-tstyle-colband-size:0;mso-style-noshow:yes;mso-style-parent:"";mso-padding-alt:0in

@font-face { font-family: "Arial";}p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal { margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt; font-family: Times; }p.MsoBodyText, li.MsoBodyText, div.MsoBodyText { margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt; font-family: Times; font-style: italic; }a:link, span.MsoHyperlink { color: blue; text-decoration: underline; }a:visited, span.MsoHyperlinkFollowed { color: purple; text-decoration: underline; }div.Section1 { page: Section1; }First, let's explore the concept of success. What does theword success mean to you, and how doesit define who you are? If success is synonymous with achievement,then you’ll need to produce something outside yourself in order to be successful.  In this scenario, success is an ending point. After you putforth the effort, you’ll produce the outcome you wanted, then you’ll besuccessful. You’re not successful until you produce the outcome: the promotion, the income, the paid off debt, the gardenteeming with zucchini and zinnias, the independently-sustaining adult children,etc. This is a case of deferred gratification.  But if success means the attainment of something, then you’re successful anytime you create an internal state that you want. Very different from achievement. Through your personal growth, youcan attain inner peace, harmonious relationships, self-love, self-knowledge,confidence, motivation, fulfillment, and the freedom to just be you. To contrast the two: you can achieve success in business,but the happy feeling you seek isn’t guaranteed to accompany success. Have you ever been bewildered because you achieveda success, but you weren’t happy? Our culture trains us to look to externalfactors to trigger our happy feelings, but that doesn’t always happen.  The deeper truth is this: you don’t need to wait forpermission or justification to feel good. You’ll attain happiness,satisfaction, contentment and fulfillment when you choose to create itinside.  Generating your own positive feelings is the only path tolasting inner peace. As long as something or someone outside you dictates whenand how you feel, you’re at their mercy. And peace is impossible.  Here’s a common example. One of the biggest challengescouples (and families) face is the temptation to compare successes. Sure, wecan intellectually agree that we each have our own passion and personality thatwe express in our own inimitable way. But daily life can reflect a lessaccepting view.  Competition creeps in when your career grows at a pace thatmay be faster or slower than your partner’s. It’s so tempting to judge fasteras better! You might also engage in measuring your partner’srelationship skills against yours, and finding fault in the difference. Do you thinkyour mate isn’t expressive enough, or that they’re too emotional? Maybe they’renot committed enough or they’re suffocating you. They work too hard or they’relazy. Even recreational activities can get thumped with the judgment stick. Underneath each of these examples is a judgment that’scommon, but hard to admit: You would be a better person if you were more likeme. My way of relating is the best, my hobbies are the best ones, etc.  Judging is an attempt to focus your attention on theother person, so you don’t have to deal with your own issues. But the nature of relationships is that each of usholds up the mirror that reflects our partner’s strengths, fears, doubts,beliefs and baggage—the whole kit and kaboodle.  So try as you might to focus your judgment on them, yourmirror always reflects the spots whereyou haven’t yet achieved “perfection” (the personal growth you’re seeking). When you see your reflection clearly, you’re free to createyour own definition of success. So how can you feel more successful now?   You don’t have to wait until you achieve a goal to enjoysuccess. When you want to feel successful, pinpoint where you’re successful now. Look around your life. Find desires that you’vealready attained—they’ll feel fulfilling any time you focus on them. Finding as much joy as you can, as often as you can, isespecially important in the area of personal development. It’s so easy tobelieve that you can’t feel fulfilled until you’ve attained the full picture ofwho you want to become. But every step along the way can be celebrated as its ownsuccess. You don’t have to earn it, either. Joy is available to you now. Lookfor it everywhere. Grab it. Squeeze it ‘til it pops. When you master the process of creating joy, you’ll feelfulfilled in every moment. Not in a schmoozy way. Not in repeating anaffirmation way. In an honest way. A real way. The key to enjoying success is to tie it to things you’repassionate about.  For instance, you could choose to be a successful lover oflife, a successful seeker of personal growth, a successful partner and friend,a successful nurturer of your children, a successful painter of pictures, anddozens more. No longer waiting for a long-term outcome or comparing yourself toothers, you’ll be free to enjoy other people’s success, too.