It’s been way too long since I posted anything on my blog, so I hope you welcome me back with open arms. Today I’m re-starting this blogging journey with a question…. What does success look like? 

This is a very common question I ask in my work when interviewing key stakeholders to define requirements for a project. In project work, this helps me to understand the vision, and business case behind the project before jumping into the detail of functionality, i.e. the How. Anything that is not aligned to that vision of success, could possibly be irrelevant to what we would be trying to achieve. Well of course, on every project, the vision of success is different and specific to that project. 

In the same way, the vision of success for your life is all up to you. Success is something that you have to define for yourself. There is no one definition, and no one else can do it for you. It is entirely up to you and the good news is that it is never too late to define what a successful life means to you. We could have achieved all the career titles, money and status that we set out to achieve and yet still not feel successful. The secret is to define for yourself what makes you happy and gives you purpose so that you can more easily measure success for your life. 

So how do you go about defining success? In all my endeavours to define my own version, I keep encountering the phrase, Start with Why. Your Why is your Purpose. The thing that will make you jump out of bed every day, the fire in your belly to keep going. Once your why is clear, if everything you do is aligned with it, you will feel successful.

If you are reading this probably you are inspired to find your Why, and I am right there with you. I’ve been researching the topic for a while and here are among the most inspiring talks on the topic. 

Simon Sinek is the author of ‘Start with why - How Great Leaders Inspire Everyone to Take Action’, an inspirational bestseller that ignited a movement. This talk goes back 13 years, but is still very relevant. 

This above is a truly incredible personal story by Jamie Anderson. I hope you enjoy watching it as much as I did.

And lastly here’s a philosophical examination of success by Alain de Botton and established British philosopher and author.

I’d love to hear your success stories, your why stories, your feedback of where you are on your success journey. Comment below or reach out to me.