What is success for you?

So, here I am on a flight to Chicago!  I’m heading to the US to see a very good friend and to present at a conference, so it’s all good!  And, I love travelling, not only because of the destination that beckons but also because I seem to be able to connect with myself so effortlessly when I’m moving.  Strange isn’t it?

Anyway, I’m sitting in seat 21B letting my thoughts flow and I remember something my coach said to me recently about success.  She asked me what success really means to me… And, you know what, it’s not always as easy as it sounds to acknowledge with honesty true feelings about success.

The more I thought about it, the more I realized that, for me, it was much deeper than achieving goals and all the good things that come from that.  I realized that my personal feelings of success were strongly linked to feeling a sense of harmony and alignment in my life.  If I didn’t have this, I didn’t feel successful, however “successful” I was!

So, what is harmony and alignment?   Do we get it the same way as the other more accepted measures of success?  I don’t think so.  The more I experience this for myself, the more I realize that achieving harmony and alignment comes not from accumulation but from release and letting go… Letting go of self-judgment, letting go of self-criticism, letting go of all the things that limit us, and allowing ourselves to just appreciate life exactly as it is in the moment.  Experiencing “now” with no strings attached!  Experiencing it as it is, no fretting, now striving, no comparing – just the way it is.

I’ve found that when I’m able to do this I can fully appreciate everything I have.  I can rejoice in everything, whether I judge it as good or bad, and feel exactly in the right place, knowing with calmness and certainty that the harmony and alignment I feel on the inside is reflected on the outside.  After all, it is the Inner that creates the Outer!

These are the thoughts I wanted to share with you… that true success is deeply personal.  It’s not about the external standards created outside of you – how you perform against the measures set by others, whether you make the grade or not – but rather the joy, the completeness, the connection you feel inside of you.

So, I invite you to take a moment and ask yourself how you really feel about success?   What do you need in your life to feel truly successful?   What is the real meaning of success for you?

And, the answer may not be what you expect!