Success is a personal journey that shouldn't be dictated by others, as illustrated by the author's experience when pressured to learn programming despite their disinterest. True success encompasses various aspects of life beyond material achievements, including health, emotions, and relationships. The author encourages individuals to define their own success, emphasizing the importance of authenticity and self-awareness in this exploration.

1. Defining Success on Your Terms
by Kathleen Gage
What is success? Success in the truest sense is a very personal thing. It’s not uncommon to fall
into the trap of letting others tell us what we must do to be successful or deciding for others
what success should mean to them.
Parents do this as do spouses. Friends do this as do bosses. Neighbors do this as do clergy.
In the early 90’s I worked for a very large corporation with offices around the globe. I really
enjoyed my job in the marketing department. I was able to interact with co-workers and clients,
vendors and potential vendors. All was good in my world. That is until I decided to let someone
else define my ideal for success.
My current boss went to great pains to convince me I needed to learn programming if I wanted
to succeed. Although I didn’t feel a calling for this my boss encouraged me to register for night
classes. Against my better judgment I did.
It didn’t take but a few minutes into the first class for me to know this was not for me. Despite
the nagging feeling in my gut I talked myself into staying.
I struggled through the classes cringing at the thought of doing this for the rest of my life.
After a few more months of rolling up my sleeves, buckling down and being miserable I decided
to admit the truth. Getting a degree in program was not my definition of success.
Not that programming is a bad thing. There are plenty of people who love it and are great at
what they do. I’m not one of them.
Needless to say my boss was disappointed. I’m convinced this put a wedge between us.
If I would have had the courage to say no from the beginning things would likely have turned
out different.
How often do we find ourselves doing something because someone else thinks we should or we
are afraid to hurt their feelings at the expense of chipping away at our truth?
As previously mentioned, success is a very personal thing. Only you can know for you what it
means.
Another common trap is to base our definition of success on what someone else is doing.
There’s nothing wrong with admiring the success of another, but admiration does not
necessarily equate to needing to do the same thing.

2. So how do you define success? What would your life be like if you had true success? What
would the evidence be? What would be different than what you are currently experiencing?
Many people equate success with outward evidence. Most would agree there is much more to
it than externals. Not that there is anything wrong with material success, but there are other
areas to consider.
What about health, emotions, spiritual awareness, relationships and contribution? The fact is,
the more you can get a sense of what success means in all areas of your life the more likely it is
you will achieve what you desire.
Yet, our definition of success and the experience of what we defined may not at all match what
we thought it would be. Moreover, (and this is where it can get very tricky) our vision of success
may not be what is meant for us.
In the coming year, you will have plenty of opportunity to explore areas that will fulfill you. Are
you willing to honor this? Only you know for sure.
Kathleen Gage is the “no-nonsense, common sense” online marketing strategist, speaker,
author, product creation specialist, and owner of Power Up For Profits. She helps entrepreneurs
make money online. Her clients are driven by making a difference through their own unique
voice.
As an early adopter of online marketing, Kathleen is known for cutting through the fluff. She
speaks and teaches about what she believes are the core elements of a successful life:
accountability, integrity, honesty, and living with passion and hope.
Kathleen believes the best way to become well known in your market is to let go of the need to
be well known and simply serve and create an incredible experience for all you come in contact
with.
http://www.PowerUpForProfits.com