Although we live in a world that seems obsessed with "maximizing" and creating success at virtually any cost, I can't help but feel that success is very much in the eye of the beholder and not some standardized thing you can just throw out there as a one-size-fits-all proposition.
I know a lot of people look at success as something that is measured in terms of monetary wealth, or possibly real estate, influence, or power but is that really all there is to it?
What about factors like considering ourselves successful because we have a great set of friends, and we have good health, and we are happy with the quality of our lives? Doesn't that count a success?
Way back in another life, I remember having a discussion with one of my business school professors back when I was at University. One of the things he — perhaps quite correctly — pointed out was that when it comes to the elements of success, if you can't teach it in school as something tangible, it's not going to be taught.
How to be happy with your life and satisfied with the quality of it is not something that can be taught in school... at least not as it stands apart from accumulating wealth.
What actually got me to thinking about this particular subject is these periodic surveys that are published in major publications addressing where "the happiest people" in the world live. Most of the time, the Nordic countries rank at the top of the list which I've always found somewhat amusing because the actual metric used to measure happiness is necessarily relevant to those Nordic countries.
Before anything else, we have to examine what our "yardstick" looks like when we measure such things as success or happiness. Moreover, we have to consider that yardstick in terms of globalization. A particular question about whether or not somebody is "happy" may have completely different implications in a different culture.
For example such an intangible as "having nice friends" will have a far larger impact on people's contentment with life in a place like Denmark than it does here in the US. Which is not to say that we don't value friends in the USA, but they definitely take second place to factors involving wealth and influence.
Getting back to the happiness example for a moment, in Denmark a question about "happiness" is most likely going to be interpreted as some version of life satisfaction, rather than a more specific type of "haha happiness." Similarly, "success" would most likely revolve less around money and accomplishments.
I think it's important to remember that success can measure many different things for different people.
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2026.08.10 01:45 PDT
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