Success

Success:

the achieving of the results wanted or hoped for.
something that achieves positive results.

“Success” is a word that should always be in quotation marks as its definition varies from person to person. Let everyone define what it means to them in life. I personally like the following definitions.

When I was 17, I read a quote that went something like: “If you live each day as if it was your last, someday you’ll most certainly be right.” It made an impression on me, and since then, for the past 33 years, I have looked in the mirror every morning and asked myself: “If today were the last day of my life, would I want to do what I am about to do today?” And whenever the answer has been “No” for too many days in a row, I know I need to change something.

—Commencement Address 2005 Stanford University, Steve Jobs.

For I have a single definition of success: you look in the mirror every evening, and wonder if you disappoint the person you were at 18, right before the age when people start getting corrupted by life. Let him or her be the only judge; not your reputation, not your wealth, not your standing in the community, not the decorations on your lapel. If you do not feel ashamed, you are successful. All other definitions of success are modern constructions; fragile modern constructions.

—Commencement Address 2016 American University of Beirut, Nassim Taleb.

To laugh often and much;

To win the respect of intelligent people
and the affection of children;

To earn the appreciation of honest critics
and endure the betrayal of false friends;

To appreciate the beauty;

To find the best in others;

To leave the world a bit better, whether by
a healthy child, a garden patch or a redeemed social condition;

To know even one life has breathed
easier because you have lived.

This is to have succeeded.

—What is Success? Ralph Waldo Emerson.

There are no secrets to success: don’t waste time looking for them. Success is the result of perfection, hard work, learning from failure, loyalty to those for whom you work, and persistence.

—Colin Powell.

Success is neither magical nor mysterious. Success is the natural consequence of consistently applying the basic fundamentals.

—Jim Rohn.

January 30, 2022 | @ArturoHerrero