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Mar 26 2014

Leader Know Thyself – What is Success

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What do you consider success? How do you know if you’ve reached that point?

I include this in those things a leader should know about themselves because I’ve found it’s important. Some leaders never stop to think about what success really is.

Take a piece of paper and write at the top, “Succes is…” Then write down a few phrases that define what you think success is for you.

What did you write? Did you list a few indicators that you’ve heard others cite as success? Did you write about material possessions such as a big house of fancy car? Did you write about accomplishing goals on the job, the next promotion, or a better office?

As a leader, it’s important to define what success is to you. This is one of the most telling exercises for a leader because it gets to what they really want at a basic level.

An executive was informed he was selected for promotion to a coveted position. This was the culmination of his career. Success! He went home that evening to tell his family and before he could say anything his son, who was a high school senior, asked him to attend the school’s awards banquet the next week. The day after the banquet he went to the office, turned down the promotion and submitted his retirement. Why? At the awards banquet his son received several awards. They were for activities the executive didn’t even know his son was doing. He realized his success was really failure.

Honestly determine what success is. Remember that success isn’t what others might tell you it is. Success is what you think it is.

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