You might have seen it in your timeline. The original post or the subsequent take-downs.

‘The most successful people I’ve met…..’ and so on.

I can’t remember the specifics of the list.  It all blurs into a vacuous fog.

As meaningless as these sound bites of content are, they just won’t seem to go away. Maybe there is something inherently appealing in the idea that we can reduce this complex life stuff to a simple list that we can all do.  A magic get your shit together potion.

The idea of success is often tied up with money, status and power. If we follow this notion through to its conclusion, Donald Trump is one of the most successful people on the planet.  Indicative perhaps, that you can be both highly successful (as some would define it at least) and still be a deeply terrible human being.

If there was a success spell, a simple way to have it all, we would have to start with understanding the answer to the question. Just what is success anyway?

For me, the answer to this question has shifted over time. How I defined it as a teenager, a young adult, and onwards, has naturally changed. There was a time for me when success meant having my seat at the table.  There was a time when it meant how far I could run.  Another, when I could wear a size eight dress.  More latterly, simply living the life that I want to lead.

Success is of course, contextual and deeply personal.  For some, it is a job title or a qualification or money in the bank.  It might be material stuff; the car, the house, the shoes, the handbags and all of the fancy holidays.  For others, success means a life well lived, a child well raised, a fine wine well drunk.  Success might just mean getting up every day and facing it and surviving it.

My own definition of success, for what is it worth, is this. Success is to love and to be loved.  To have health and fitness, and to wish the same for those around you.  To be able to pay the bills at the end of the month with a little left over for some fun on the journey.  Good friends.  Laughter.  To make a difference at work, even in a small way.  That one person might read this blog and enjoy it.

Because despite all the content clickbait and the likes and the shares and even the mockery of the same, I do know this.

The only person who can really define success, is yourself.