What’s Your Definition of Success?

What does success really mean to you? It’s important to clarify your thoughts, goals and desires before you can achieve success! You can’t work towards something passionately when you aren’t sure what the end result will be.

Success means many different things to different people. Unfortunately, the tendency is to view monetary gain as success. However, financial wealth is only a small part of overall success.

Different Areas of Success

Because there are different areas of success, you can be successful in one area and unsuccessful in others. In order to develop a plan for your success, you need to make your own list of areas that are relevant to you.

* To achieve overall success in life, you’ll need to examine your priorities in each area.

For many of us, there are 3 main components of success. In your personal plan for success, there may be even more. Be sure to include any areas that are important to you.

Here are the 3 main areas, along with some tips and techniques to help you evaluate your priorities and formulate your success plan:

1. Career. To evaluate your career, contemplate these questions:


* Do you desire a higher status position?
* What amount of income would make you happy?
* Would you simply like to feel appreciated by your boss?


Any number of things can be used to measure your success when it comes to your career.

* In your career evaluation, be sure to determine what strengths and weaknesses you have that can help or hinder you from achieving your goal.

2. Emotional. These questions can guide you to important considerations for your emotional success:


* Are you satisfied with your relationships?
* What have you learned so far that could help you do better in the future?
* If you have children, do you feel successful in how you’re raising them?
* Is your marriage a happy one?

3. Health. Are you doing everything you can to improve your overall well-being? Maybe a change in diet and exercise is in order. Take a moment to evaluate whether you’ve achieved success in this area or if there’s room for improvement.

* If your health can use a boost, make a plan to start implementing changes in your daily routine that lead to a healthier lifestyle.

The Journey to Success

Your journey to success will have highs and lows throughout your life. There will be mistakes and disappointments. You may experience a setback at some point. The beauty is that you can get back on track and move closer to your goals at any time.

* You may achieve new levels of success at different times in your life and career. As you progress in your job, start a family, and get involved in giving back to your community, your definition of success may change, as do your priorities. Go with the flow; it’s okay for your outlook on life and your meaning of success to change over time.

* Love what you do! Life is too short to be stuck doing something you despise. To achieve success in life, work with what you’ve got. Focus on your strengths and interests and do the things that bring those to the forefront of your life.

* Challenges and obstacles are opportunities for improvement and further success. Everyone has setbacks at some point in their lives. If we didn’t, we wouldn’t be human. The successful individual has the confidence that he can and will do better!

Every so often, it’s very important to step back and re-evaluate your idea of success. There are so many changes in life and with each one you’ll find that your priorities change also. Never underestimate the power that comes from persistence and experience, just don’t forget to enjoy the journey!

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The Wheel of Life

A favorite saying of mine is that midlife isn’t about finding yourself, it’s about creating yourself. But how do you start – especially after 50? Well, the wheel of life assessment is a great tool you can use right now to take inventory of your life in eight major areas:

• Career
• Health
• Personal development
• Friends and family
• Physical environment
• Finance
• Romance/significant other and
• Fun and recreation

For a working copy of the wheel, use the image here as a guide to make a circle divided into eight pie-shaped sections. Look at the smallest part of each pie section as a score of zero (0) where you are least satisfied. The outer edge of each piece of the pie represents where you are most satisfied or a score of ten (10).

Now, ask yourself how you are feeling about each of the eight areas of your life. Ask tough questions like – do I like my job or do I hate to go to work each day? Am I in debt? How is my overall health? Do I have a supportive network of friends and family? Am I in relationship transition? Do I feel stuck at this point in life? What do I do for fun? How do I like my living space?

Then rate yourself in each area on a scale of 0 – 10. Use a pen to mark a line at the point on each section of the pie that represents your score. Color in each section from the line you made to the very center of the pie. What many of us end up with is what looks like a very lop-sided wheel – one you wouldn’t want to ride around on. And yet you are.

Once you see your Wheel of Life, you have a clear snapshot of what’s going well in your life – and what isn’t. Then you can start taking action to improve your scores – and your ride through this next phase of life.

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Learning to Accept Yourself

You may be surprised at how many people lack the ability to accept themselves for who they are. Many people are able to put on a front so they appear self-confident when they really aren’t.

The good news is that, even if you’re one of these people, you can learn how to accept yourself. If you’re suffering from low self worth and confidence, you really do have the ability to turn things around!

Why It’s Important To Accept Yourself

It’s important to accept yourself because that one move can mean the difference between a life of happiness and a life of sadness. When you accept yourself, you’re more likely to accomplish more in your life.

The reason is the fact that self-acceptance can be seen as a foundation. After you accept yourself, you can continue to build from there and add on: confidence, tranquility, enthusiasm, drive and happiness.

Steps To Acceptance

There are many methods and tips that you’ll encounter on your way to acceptance, and you’ll soon find your own unique way of getting there.

Try these strategies to help you accept yourself:

1. Allow for mistakes. Sometimes you may try too hard to be perfect, and this in itself is another mistake. Allow yourself to make mistakes because you’re a human being. You’ll make small mistakes and big mistakes in life, but it’s how you bounce back from them that’ll make all the difference.

2. Live in the present. The reason you haven’t accepted yourself could be the fact that you’re living your life in the past. Maybe you’re unable to forgive yourself for something that has happened or a certain trait that you have. Getting over the past is an important step to build confidence, self-respect, and hope for the future.

3. Avoid comparing yourself to others. Others have different skill sets and life experiences, which may make you envious. In these situations, come to terms with the fact that you don’t have what they have. However, on the bright side, there are many things that you do have that they don’t.

* Each and every person is unique. Be grateful for what makes you different from others, as this is part of your own inner beauty!

4. Have realistic goals. If you don’t maintain realistic goals, you’re setting yourself up for failure. The truth is, you won’t even have a chance from the start! So instead, give yourself a reasonable chance to achieve your goals. How can you do this? By setting realistic and manageable goals that you can confidently achieve.

5. Be comfortable in your own skin. Sometimes you don’t want to accept yourself because of the way you look. Society puts some serious pressure on people that way. Remember that people in magazines are usually unhealthy and airbrushed and you shouldn’t strive to look like them. Instead, focus on your positive attributes and overall health.

6. Think positive thoughts. One of the most important accomplishments on the journey to accepting yourself is learning to think positively. It’s easy to forget how much power there is in thought.

* If you make an effort to think a certain way, you can actually change your manner of thinking and, therefore, change your actions. Positive thinking leads to positive actions, which lead to feeling good about yourself.

Help From Your Loved Ones

Remember that you can always ask for help from your loved ones. It may help to get some outside perspective on your problems. You tend to be your own worst critic, but you can count on your loved ones for their generous support and love.

Your loved ones have almost certainly accepted you for who you are. You’ll be happier once you’ve come to this same realization as well.

Take these strategies to heart because, once you learn to accept yourself, you’ll find the world is a wonderful place and you’ll enjoy your place in it!

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Keys to Success: Flexibility

You’ll find success as soon as you learn to be more flexible! Flexibility in all areas of life can help you achieve success and help you inspire others to find their own version of success, too. But what exactly does it mean and how can you get there?

What Is Flexibility?

Of course you know what flexibility is. It’s the opposite of rigid, the opposite of being set in your ways. When you’re flexible, you’re open. You’ll easily be able to roll with the punches.

When a non-flexible person is thrown a curve ball, they’ll fluster, complain, or even give up. But that doesn’t have to describe you anymore!

Why Is Flexibility A Key To Success?

Flexibility is a key to success for several reasons. Perhaps most importantly, flexibility helps you overcome challenges. It can open up your world to opportunities that you never thought you’d experience. Flexibility can be the key to helping you enjoy the true spices of life.

It’s important to remain flexible in the workplace. When you’re flexible, your co-workers and boss will like you. Why? Because they know that they can count on you during times of uncertainty or change in the workplace. You’ll also notice that this added flexibility gives your days a variety that helps you get out of bed in the morning.

Flexibility also helps your home life. When you’re flexible, there will be less conflict and more understanding between family members. In turn, you’ll enjoy easier and more fulfilling relationships with your family. Flexibility helps you re-organize your schedule when something unexpected happens without having to fret over the details. This could be as simple as coming up with a quick alternative dinner plan in case someone burns dinner.

How Can You Become More Flexible?

So now you know why it’s important to be flexible, but how can you get there?

Try these strategies to enjoy more flexibility in your life:

1. Work on self-awareness. Part of being adaptable is being aware of your immediate reactions. They may not be very appropriate, so you can consider keeping them to yourself. An example would be to complain because someone is bringing home a dinner guest at the last minute. This wasn’t something you planned for! Remember the big picture and set a new place at dinner. Later you can remind your family to give notice next time.

2. Step out of your comfort zone. In order to become more flexible, you’ll need to get used to regularly stepping out of your comfort zone. It may help to start with small things because it won’t be as much of a shock if you’re a really routine person.

* While it may take a bit of a personality change, stepping out of your comfort zone can prove to be exhilarating because you never know what you might learn.

3. Speak up. Some people may be unaware that you’re inherently flexible. Make yourself heard by those around you. Suggest alternatives to solve problems at home or work. When you do, people will remember that you helped out.

Take Small Steps

A great strategy is to take small steps to get to where you need to go. Everyone comes with a different skill set. You may be a flexible person that just needs to expand, or you may need to work on gaining flexibility as a whole. You can’t expect to be a different person overnight, but with small steps you’ll be there soon!

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How to Develop Your Strengths

Everyone has unique talents and strengths, but whether we’ve discovered and actively developed them is the real question! Maybe we’ve been told that we’re good at something, but we let our skills go untapped while we wait for the confidence and courage to take action.

There are even some people whose self-esteem is suffering to the point that they truly believe they don’t possess any talents at all! If this is you, please believe that your talents are there, just waiting to be revealed to you!

These tried and true strategies will help you develop your strengths to their full potential:

1. Research. Perhaps you think that you’re strong in one area, but you aren’t completely sure. This is where you need to look into things that interest you or that you believe you might be good at. See what resources are available and what it would take to make the commitment to strengthen your strengths.

2. Patience. Developing your strengths to their full potential won’t occur overnight. To fully develop a talent, you must be patient. Patience is not easy and many of us tend to struggle with it. But if you can be patient, you’ll definitely reap the benefits at the end of the process.

* A useful way to think of developing your talents is to consider it as a journey. It may take a while, but you’ll learn a lot along the way.

* You’ll make mistakes and celebrate milestones, and by the time you’re done, your strength will be fully developed to the peak of your abilities.

3. Set goals. People are more successful when they set goals. Write down what you’d like to accomplish and what date you’d like to achieve this by. Remember to be realistic and review your goals frequently to keep yourself on track.

* Post your goals in places where you’ll see them throughout the day. The refrigerator, bathroom mirror, and your computer monitor are a few ideas. This will not only keep you on track, but it’ll also motivate you to reach these goals as quickly as possible.

4. Believe you can do it. Confidence can be one of your greatest strengths and assets. When trying to improve yourself in any capacity, if you truly believe that you’re able to accomplish anything, you’ve won half the battle. 


* The battle with your mind is often greater than any challenge you face in reality.

* You may have tough days when you’re unsure of yourself, but as long as you get back on track quickly, you’ll build momentum. Remember, you can do this!

Final Thoughts on Developing Your Strengths

Strengthening your strengths may be a daunting and overwhelming journey at times. And, yes, it will take some work. But everything worth anything involves hard work!

It’s important to focus on the big picture and remember the rewards you’ll enjoy once this process is over. Also, ensure that you have the unwavering belief that you can accomplish anything you set your mind to. By possessing these two attributes, you’ll be on the road to success in no time!

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