Success: What Does it Mean to You

Success: What Does it Mean to You by Bell Rose Ntube Ngole
Success means different things to different people. For any individual to achieve success the person needs to define what success means to him; and unless the person can have a clear understanding and vision of what success is, then that person cannot work towards achieving that goal. There is no one achievement that makes a person successful; for some, acquisition of wealth is a measure of success; being married and having children can be another person’s definition of success; to another, it is doing the will of God, and yet to some others, it may be academic and career attainment.
Given these varied definitions of success, it is fair to say that there is no one attribute that makes a man successful. Certain habits however may contribute towards making an individual successful. Some of these include integrity, resilience, and dedication, belief in self, competence, hard work, prioritizing, and focus.
It is often said that a man’s attitude will determine his altitude-that is how far the man will go in life. Drawing from the pool of successful people that are talked about today, one common characteristic they all possess is integrity. Integrity is a virtuous core value that is important to successful individuals. Integrity builds trust and is a motivational factor for success. People can only run with the vision of a leader who has integrity; this is because people like to emulate successful individuals. A leader who has integrity is an influencer and a role model. People trust and follow him because they are oriented to his values. An example of such an individual is United States President, Barack Obama, whose success has an impact worldwide.
Resilience is another habit common among successful individuals- Resilient people always have the drive, the will and capability to bounce back after a fall. President Obama, for instance, did not give up on his vision when he lost the Illinois senate race for the very first time. He had a goal and a vision. His resilience paid off and he became the President of the United States of America.
Dedication and belief-in-self are other motivating habits of successful individuals. A successful man has self confidence and is dedicated to his vision. He knows what he wants and believes he can attain it. When he is faced with challenges, this dedication drives him to look for alternative solutions to achieving his goals.
A successful individual does not pursue many goals; he focuses on one idea/goal at a time. This is crucial because when an individual is distracted by so many ideas, the individual cannot perform at his maximum.
A successful individual is good at what he does. He may not have the mastery and the skills at the very outset but he knows those skills could be learned in the course of time. Successful individuals never allow lack of competence to be a deterrent in accomplishing their goals.
Successful individuals are hard workers. They work diligently to ensure that they succeed at whatever task they set out to accomplish. They are people who understand the necessity of practicing the persistent principle; “try and try again.”
Furthermore, successful individuals know how to prioritize things. They always have a checklist and they fulfill the obligations that are most important to them. They have the ability to never stop pursuing their dreams. They never take their eyes off of their vision. “Try and try again is their mantra”