The Face of Success

The Face of Success

written by

Jeannette Zink

August 6, 2015

I have decided to give success a face of expression.  I have also decided that the question to be addressed is not “where do I expect to be in 5 years”.  It does not matter where I am on the landscape of this earthly plane.  What does matter is the defining of success for wherever I may find myself -- how does it look, what are its feelings, does it have meaning bigger than the parts, will it bring good to the universe … Yes, the more relevant question to be explored is “what will success look like for me in 5 years”.  The reflection I hope to see in the mirror of tomorrow’s future will have the features of a well-defined foundation for living a life of success.

The evolving life that is all mine will have the necessary tools and descriptive vocabulary to measure the net worth of my contributions and the expected benefits to the intended recipients… this will be my worldly view of success.  So, where I choose to be, who I choose to befriend, and how I get from A to Z on my lifetime journey will be evaluated against the weight of relevance to these thoughtfully examined success values.

How to go about this rather lofty task of finding meaning for an abstract concept of success is the first challenge… lists are good, but what kind of lists.  Perhaps I should first define what success does not look like, maybe then I will find my way to what it does look like … let’s try that approach, and see where it takes us.

Success does not look like…
Big time job title
Big time box top in an organizational structure
Knowing the right people in “high places”
Awards, big bonuses, top of the pay scale and career ladder accomplishments
Winning in the game of office politics
High performance ratings
Successes far outweigh failures
Home, cars, clothes, and impressive residential address
Educational degree(s) and powerhouse resume

So, what does success look like, by my definition…
Do I love more, hurt less
Do I accept the me that I have become
Do I try new things without the worry of failure
Do I find the joy in just doing because it brings satisfaction
Do I laugh more; cry less
Do I have the love and respect of a family who accepts me with all my flaws
Do I show and say love to those I cherish
Do I give without the expectation of receiving anything in return
Do I accept being loved without apprehension
Do I accept not being the best at whatever the perceived competition
Do I accept not being the center of attention
Do I accept my fragile and aging mind and body
Do I accept a helping hand graciously when needed
Do I graciously give a helping hand when needed
Do I accept that not everyone will love and accept who I am
Do I acknowledge and accept my mistakes
Do I believe and accept that God loves the imperfect me
Do I love me
Do I give back more than I take
Do I trust more than distrust
Do I value exploring the questions more than just finding an answer
Do I laugh and giggle more than frown

Do I say YES more than NO to all of the above…

if YES, then maybe this is the Face of my SUCCESS!

to be continued…