Success- Do you have it and how to get it.

As the owner of a small business, I am constantly reflecting on the topic of "success". Is it how much money I make? How many contacts I have? How many appointments on the book? There are always people to compare myself to and either feel like a champion or a loser. And I frequently visit both realities, especially after "catching up" on Facebook.

We are inundated with paradigms of success that focus on how much money we make compared to last year or the latest kitchen or car or newest adventure. Who has the best connections, the most interesting things to say. We all get sucked into the need to feel as if we are growing and doing better than before. Goals, objectives or at minimum, comparing the vocalists on American Idol.

I sat outside today and thought about people I sincerely envied and felt had achieved success in their lives. They had traveled the world. 50,000 people have read their blog. Their children were nice and funny. Famous actors, local business owners. And, it occurred to me, that most of them didn’t have more money or fame than they wanted. If they did, their lives weren’t postcard perfect. Many of them worked multiple jobs, looking for work or were on financial assistance. They weren't universally loved and always on top. Some of them were now dead. At that moment, the meaning of success changed just slightly for me. It seemed to me that very successful people, were just people.

After this thought, I noticed that I was sitting outside on a beautiful, fall day. I had time to listen to the birds. I had my needs met and more even if I didn’t always get the newest and the prettiest. I had lots of fulfilling, if at times challenging relationships. I had set up my business and my life so that it gave me what I really wanted most: time, love, companionship, adventure.

This isn’t a blog about how “the world is materialistic and we’ve forgotten our priorities”. It’s a blog about how even sincerely successful people don’t fit any idealized vision of success. I had a bodywork session with a successful lawyer last week. He has many things I’d like to have- money, a thriving career and respect in the community. He is genuinely a very nice and, to me, successful guy. And like most of us, he still works, worries about his relationships, has a hard time changing unhealthy patterns and on and on. Hmmm…..

So, what if success really meant just, living a pleasant life? Weird. That just blows my mind.