[Closed] Do you consider yourself to be a success?

maybe he formed exceedingly low expectations of you as children? 😉

yes i have not died nor have I killed anyone...I may be setting the bar low ...would still like to be more patient but hey I guess that will have to wait 😉

Does it matter really? Nice to get praise from people who care though.

Taking into account the shitfest I'm in the middle of at the moment, I'd say not. In myself, I'd say yes.

I think I have wasted my 'potential'. So do a lot of people who profess to really 'know me'.

'is it worth the aggravation to find yourself a job when there's nothing worth working for?'

See? That's my problem. Very happy though, got 2 great kids, a beautiful and clever partner and a house by the sea and the woods. That's fine.

Middle aged,divorced,5 figure debt,earning less than I did 20 years ago,no prospects job,living in shared house........but I can do proper dipped 360's and I'll be cat2 by the summer.So yeah.

Given that I'm hoping to graduate this summer, have a year out and then go into medicine I'd suggest that I'm not yet a success although have the potential to be a success at some point!

Family are all apparently very proud of me though, I'm the first one in this branch of the family to be particularly academically minded and go to uni etc. so 🙂

By whose standards are we measuring success? If it's your own then only you can judge what is or isn't successful.

And what is success? Money? Property? Career? Family?

The question is too open ended. It's too much for my head at this time of year, I'm just thinking about the next drink.

I've enjoyed both minor success and major failure in equal measure, life has a habit of sending me swerves, if for one moment I get the feeling I'm on top then for sure the very next day it'll bite me in the bum, so I try not to consider myself anything other than an ordinary bloke struggling along with the rest against the evils of the world, Lawyers, Politicians & Bankers. (Especially the ones that consider themselves successful).

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Can just about do doubles and table tops - so yes.

'is it worth the aggravation to find yourself a job when there's nothing worth working for?'

See? That's my problem.

if the problem you refer to is taking your life philosophy from the pen of noel gallagher then your problems are more profound than you could ever imagine 😉

I am happy, have done lots of intersting things, have enough money for my modest needs, am healthy, I get to ride my bike and climb moutains

That will do me

Its obviously a hopelessly open ended question but by my own standards and expectations I think, 'yes but could do better'. Pretty much all my school reports said the same thing. My extreme risk aversion holds me back more than anything.

i reckon so, but 1st define success, cos i define it largly based on happiness.

happily married for 22yrs, 2 great kids, 1 awesome grandaughter
never been unemployed, no debt except a tiny amount left on the mortgage............and still have a full head of hair.

Yes.

No.

Maybe.

Pick the one you like the most.

I am 100% with TJ on this. (there, I said it)

I measure success not by how "senior" I've become, but by the fact that I'm happy, and have the time to contribute to the happiness of those I love.

Yes, I think I'm successful

Do you have people that you care about and who care about you in return? Do the joys outweigh the lows?
if so, Job done!

Can you still enjoy going out to play on your bike with your friends? Well what else do you need?

In terms of success, personally I am happy, I have supportive parents, good friends, a good woman, live in one of the most beautiful cities in the world, have a job that is satisfying and that i am good at. I play on my bike whenever i can, and get a little better at it every time i ride. I have everything i need.
hooray! Merry Christmas!

[i]"By whose standards are we measuring success? If it's your own then only you can judge what is or isn't successful.

And what is success? Money? Property? Career? Family?

The question is too open ended. It's too much for my head at this time of year, I'm just thinking about the next drink. [/i]

By your own standards - do YOU consider yourself to be successful?

Yes.
I am healthy and have maintained that health through activities I love doing.
I have a beautiful wife who is about to pop out out first child
I have a bunch of good mates that I enjoy spending time with and I can rely on.
I have a job I enjoy and I think I'm good at.
I earn enough money to be happy and occasionally indulge myself in lifes luxuries.

So yeah, accordingly to my 'gauge' I'd say so.

No

Career-wise - yes. Got as senior as I wish to be in order to still be a specialist and therefore find my work interesting and stimulating (more important to me than continuing to climb the ladder of management ...)

Friend-wise - yes. I'm lucky enough to know lots of lovely, wonderful people.

Relationship-wise - erm, no, bit of a disaster zone.

As a person - up to others to decide! I continue to try to see the best in people, to care about others, made the most of all the positives in life, and to be there for anyone who needs support.

I can manual, bunnyhop, rail corners and pull out a bit of style when jumping . Pretty successful, I'd say.

By your own standards - do YOU consider yourself to be successful?

Ahhhh yes, but almost by default we are compelled to measure success based on others standards. They are never your own standards because we don't truly have our own.

.... I have been drinking today.

Ton nails it for me.
I rate happiness higher than success. They're both probably intrinsically linked in the world in which i live and I'm happy at the moment so therefore I reckon I'm successful enough.
Life is for living, not for conforming to expectations of achievements and success. But then the happiness of those close to me but less enlightened might be based on my success therefore I need to conform to some extent.
Basically, I'd be happy living in a cave as long as I had food in my belly.
Others probably just think I'm lazy and that I've had too much port.

Successful? Nah, I'm generally a failure 😕

Hmmn if my parents were still alive I'm confident that they would consider me a success: in my job, with a lovely wife and two wonderful boys, lots of toys (for me)...but it's all ephemeral . It has to be an internal judgement. Are you happy? And actually yep I am!..who knows what the future holds?

I rate happiness higher than success

My dad gave me a bit of advice that has stuck with me since the day he told me

[i]'Son, success in measured in many ways, least of all what you do at work'[/i]

I always think of this when I see all those tossers at work trying to out do each other/stab each other in the back for that next grade.

Having recently dealt with something that has "held me back" emotionally for years and, having handled it in a way I am very, very proud of, I do think I've been "successful".

Rachel

You can only really "judge" the success or failure of your life on your own criteria and at the end of it. So wait till your on your death bed then decide.

I will say this though STW forum membership probably puts a dent in anyones bid for "success"....

At the minute I'm pretty happy with my life, so I'd class that as a success 🙂

Professionally I probably am, although it often doesn't feel like it. If you're in a creative line of work, and ambitious, it produces a constant tension and element of discomfort IME. The bad side of this is anxiety and unhappiness that you're not doing well enough. The good side is the sense of accomplishment and recognition you get when you create something worthwhile. Balance is everything, but often hard to find.

Personally, yeah, I have it made. Blessed with a happy family.

How do we measure success?

Personally, I don't, and never have, give a flying fig about work or a 'career' or qualifications. They mean nothing to me. All I want is a job that's not too boring, that I can walk away from at night/weekends/holidays and forget about, that pays enough for me to do the stuff I want to do.

By that measure, I think I'm very successful thank you very much!

I am happy, have done lots of intersting things, have enough money for my modest needs, am healthy, I get to ride my bike and climb moutains

That will do me

That makes a lot of sense too.

You don't buy days like this with money
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[url= http://www.flickr.com/photos/25846484@N04/4734766579/ ]18 Alongside Loch Shiel[/url] by [url= http://www.flickr.com/people/25846484@N04/ ]TandemJeremy[/url], on Flickr

Nope

It's a very backward looking question and given you can't change the past, pretty pointless. Everyone has the chance to be a success in the future, however you define it.

Simply, not at all.

Apart from breathing and maintaining a heart rate.

Not really no. Sometimes I think I messed everything up. Lot of wasted potential.

I've done alright as far as work and life experiences and all that rubbish goes, quite happy there, but I'm an emotional and social cripple and I feel that's what really counts. Sometimes I feel happy, but normally I don't. I always assumed unhappiness was the natural male state.

Ho hum.

I'm kind of a big thing

You don't buy days like this with money

'Tis true.

Additionally success should be measured relative to the hand you are dealt..and then how you play that hand...

Blimey, bit deep for me 😯 best have another glass of red. 😀

I am English
I was born in wedlock
I am on dry land
Result

[i]You don't buy days like this with money[/i]

yeah you do. theres rucksacks and shades and walking boots and all the stuff that's in them, and getting there, and time off from work... Your kidding yourself TJ

Am I successful? dunno, happy as a pig in wotsit though.

IME a lot of people who are what other people call 'a success' are driven by very high standards, insecurity, unhappiness or escaping from something... which makes me think striving to be 'successful' isn't entirely a positive thing to do.

On the other hand, things I've done which have required a massive effort, or breaking through barriers, or I've done well at (rather than just participated), have given me such a buzz and sense of satisfaction, that I think 'success' is often well worth striving for - the rewards can be addictive. That's when you get those moments of 'life is brilliant'.

And somewhere in the middle you need to find your balance. I'm still on the journey personally...