What’s the secret to success? If you search Google, you’ll get tons of results on the topic, from books to videos to quotes to more. Everyone has something to say—or sell—about how to achieve success and what it takes to get there.
But not everyone’s definition of success is the same. How do you define and measure success? Lots of money and fame? Or, is it about how happy you are with your life at work and home?
For some people, success is about wealth and fame, and for others, it’s about being happy in our daily lives even if we don’t have a ton of money to spend.
Regardless of what success means to you, I think the secret is simple, and it’s right in front of most of us! I know that sounds crazy, and you probably think I don’t know what I am talking about. Perhaps you're wondering if it’s so simple, why aren’t most of us enjoying all the comforts of a successful life right now?
In my opinion, success is about you as an individual and your attitude. Maybe you were born into a less resourceful family, or maybe life has thrown some unexpected challenges your way. But no matter what the case may be, we play a pivotal role in how success manifests in our lives.
With few exceptions, I believe anything is possible, especially in the U.S. The only question is, how badly do we want to be successful? Are we willing to be uncomfortable continuously? Are we willing to give up something in order to move forward?
No matter how you define your success, I believe there are three major points that determine the outcome:
- How determined you are to meet your goals and reach your vision.
- How creative you are at solving problems and coming up with inventive solutions.
- How fulfilled you are with your life at work and home.
Determination
Successful people are determined to achieve their goals no matter what it takes.
If you’re determined to reach your goals, you’ll need to get used to being uncomfortable. Discomfort is a critical part of the process when it comes to moving forward, achieving your goals, and gaining confidence.
Being 100 percent determined is like being an Olympic athlete striving for gold. Now, imagine that you’ve been going to the Olympics every year for decades, doing everything you can to win. This is how it feels, and the effort required, to be a determined person. If you are truly determined, you’ll do anything you have to for as long as it takes to meet your goals. (There are two major exceptions to this: You should never do anything illegal or anything that puts yourself or others in danger.)
I am a living example of how determined a person can be. I came to this country without any knowledge of the language or culture, and fought my way through school and corporate American until I reached my goals. I was determined to build a reasonable life for myself and family by the age of 55. I sacrificed so many things over the last 30+ years because I believed in my vision. I worked hard, even when nothing came easily.
If I can do it, you can do it as well. The question is, how badly do you want it?
Creativity
When you encounter a problem, how do you deal with it? Do you ask, why is this happening to me? Do you blame everything and everyone else for the situation? Or, do you see it as part of life and try your very best to find creative solutions? By creative solutions, I mean, you look for any reasonable path forward, no matter how hard it might be to enact or how much personal sacrifice may be required.
Being a creative problem solver is essentially learning to design your life. A designer comes up with a few draft versions of a project in order to solve a particular issue. You may need to try different solutions until you reach your goals. Most of the time, people avoid this step. They’ll try one path, usually the most obvious, and when that doesn’t work out, they’ll give up. Successful people keep trying, and they never stop until they figure out a solution that works.
Of course, most of us like to vent our frustrations and maybe even project our fears onto other people or things; we often avoid taking the right steps to find our own solutions. Indeed, it can be challenging to find the right answers. But when creative problem solvers hit a wall, they ask other people to help.
Fulfillment
Another key element to achieving success is how happy you are with your work and personal life. After all, we spend most of our waking time at work, so if we really like our job, it stands to reason we would be much happier in our day-to-day life.
If we have a job aligned with our personal values, then we can sleep well and look forward to going to work the next morning. I was there for a short two years when I was a quality engineer at Apple. Sunday nights I couldn’t wait until Monday morning to go to work. But it all changed when I became a manager.
Most of us are not lucky enough to have truly fulfilling jobs that align with our values. But this doesn't mean we can’t slowly try to transition to a career that might bring us personal satisfaction. Although it’s hard work and it could take years to build a new profession, it’s not impossible. In fact, I’m in the process of doing it right now as I grow my Professional Coaching business. I have no idea where it will land, but I’ll do everything to make the journey a success. The end result is out of my control; instead, I must use my determination and creative problem-solving skills to focus on my vision for personal and professional fulfilment.
Would you like to discuss the three elements of success further and how they interact specifically in your career? As a Professional Coach with many years of managerial experience in major high-tech companies, I can help guide you. Make an appointment, free of charge, and then you can decide if a coaching service might be helpful for you.