Everyone has a certain perception of success, but unfortunately, the process is greatly simplified and misrepresented in everything the media means today.
Our generation is massively influenced by digital media and the narrative we are fed. The stories are rendered in a short, stripped-down form that seems to simplify everything as if it were very easy.
No one wants to hear how Bill Gates never took a day off from his 20s to 30s to get where he is now and that he spent his youth just working. That does not generate ratings in the media. Not controversial, not clickbait-able.
Thus, the population gets the impression that success is like a lottery where you try an idea once and one day you will be a millionaire.
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In recent years the internet has been filled with fake gurus who rent luxury cars and manipulate the perception of their reality by the way they display themselves on their Instagram accounts. It’s very easy these days to do that and you don’t need a lot of money to appear wealthy and do it well.
For example, we need to rent a room at a luxury hotel for $200/night. You can just go to a lobby of a 5-star hotel and buy the cheapest coffee. You dress up nicely, take some pictures of yourself in a luxurious setting and put it on the internet for the world to see how successful you are (when in fact you are staying in an Airbnb or hostel). But we know well that reality is different from what we see online.
You see, the successful people I follow say that wealth is not measured by how much money you have but by how much you can afford to spend (we are now referring to material success). You have $1 million in your account for nothing if you can’t fully enjoy it (of course, spending it all in one day wouldn’t be advisable, but you get the idea).
People who want to appear successful will use every technique to present themselves in a setting where they have status. There are also young people my age or younger than me who flex on insta in various contexts that make them look like tricksters just to feed their selfishness with fake likes and impressions from those around them.
Unfortunately, they will not be able to gain the respect of a person above their level if they do this. If they want to gain the respect and attention of those above, they should rather channel their energy into providing real value through the services or products they create.
But as long as the idea of success is oversimplified by both the media and people trying to get big quick fortunes through immorality, cheating, and improper practices, it’s easy to be negatively influenced and sometimes wonder “Why not me?” I have what X has?” (which leads to frustrations, etc.).
What does success mean to you? Many see success as an endpoint, a destination that you reach after a lot of work and effort. But the truth is that success is a process, not an outcome.
How often have you heard the statement, “Once I get there, I’ll be happy”? How many times have you set a certain goal and thought that when you achieve it, you will be satisfied?
The truth is that success is not an arrival point, but a continuous path of growth and development. And more than that, success is not just a matter of getting what you want, but rather becoming what you need to be.
Consider Thomas Edison, the inventor of the light bulb.
Do we all think it was successful the first time?
Not. He failed thousands of times before he succeeded. But he had the courage to continue, to learn from every failure, and not to give up on his dream. That is the true essence of success – resilience, and perseverance.
What the process looks like to achieve success
The process of achieving success is like selecting a piece of rock that you carve each day to make a sculpture.
The rock is the direction you choose and it doesn’t matter how long it takes to complete the sculpture because we know well that some of the most spectacular architecture in the world was built over generations. It depends on what kind of sculpture you want to make in this life.
“Success is the ability to go from one failure to another without losing your enthusiasm.” – Winston Churchill
At the same time, if you have the impression that success is an instant reward, you are wrong. Success does not come overnight. It is a long journey, full of obstacles and failures. It is a constant struggle, a journey of self-development and personal growth.
Just as a climber climbing a mountain doesn’t just focus on the top, but on each step he takes, so you should focus on the process of reaching success, not just the outcome.
Success isn’t about getting what you want, it’s about becoming the person who deserves to get what you want. This requires personal development, continuous learning and adaptation to new situations.
When was the last time you learned from a failure?
When have you tried something new without expecting instant success?
If the answer is “a long time” or “never,” then it’s time to reevaluate your perception of success.
It’s not about the destination, it’s about the journey. It’s about the process of becoming a better version of yourself, day by day.
Also read: What skills do you need to be successful?
What can we learn from successful people?
I have heard different stories and teachings of business personalities who now have the success they want.
You will hear the same typical stories from all of them:
- it takes perseverance
- you have to want it
- you have to plan and act
- you have to make good decisions
- And so on
The truth is we all know that (I hope). And yet not all of us are successful. Why? Because the action itself is missing.
A practical implementation of the theory is missing.
And I don’t mean that “blind” or quick action (for example when you start the gym with a lot of enthusiasm, you make pretty ok progress after 3 months and then something happens and you stop going and then you have to start from scratch ).
Constant action in the same direction is needed.
And sometimes it might take longer than we expected. Other times we may lose our initial excitement and become impatient.
It’s for nothing that you start 5 businesses in different fields in a decade and then complain that you had 5 failed businesses.
The most successful people start a business in a field, and even if let’s say their business fails, they continue in the same field with a maybe better or more innovative idea or maybe done differently.
Some become so good at this game that after launching, growing and selling a business, they start another business exactly the same and repeat the same things that worked.
Why change something that works?
Because you’re bored?
A business is not about you. The affair doesn’t have to be about your insecurities or temperamental issues. It’s normal to get bored after a while.
Business is about the problem you solve. And that problem most of the time repeats itself over and over and over.
Do you think a surgeon changes his profession after 3 years because he got bored of doing heart surgery? Not.
When it gets boring, that’s when you absolutely have to move on.
We should have more successful examples of this “boring” around us. Maybe that’s how we’ll control our temper.
(I learned these lessons from Alex Hormozi, one of the people I love to follow since they were little known until they went viral on the internet).
Read also: The first steps to an extraordinary life
question
What area have you tried the “lottery method” in your life?
What was the result?
What is the plan for making your sculpture?
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