My Dear friends,

‘Success’…What does it mean to you?

Many people; in fact millions, tens of millions are constantly looking for ‘Success’, every day pushing forward trying to achieve it…but what is it?…Is success measured by wealth, how much money you have in your bank? Is it measured by the car that you drive, the size of your house, the job that you have, the job title you hold, the academic qualifications you achieve, how fit and healthy you are, the clothes that you wear, the holidays you take, the number of friends you have, how much you spend on ‘stuff’….What is success? and; how do you achieve it?

Food for thought my friends, food for thought!

I live in a society that holds achievement as a benchmark for success, I.e, you must gain the highest grades in your school life, then the highest grades and ranking in your university life, then gain further qualifications like an MBA; of course with the highest grade, then get the best job title with the best and biggest company, buy a car, buy a house get married and have a baby as quickly as possible because even this shows ‘success’, buy expensive clothes, top fashion brands, fancy watch, jewelry, send your child to the best school, give them extra classes so they learn more, achieve more and become successful!…Nothing wrong with wanting the best in life for yourself and your family…but, does it bring you success?

This, of course; depends on your evaluation of what success really means to you… and I often see all of the above bringing ‘No’ happiness to so many each and every day. People, friends, colleagues etc who are so tired, so stressed, so challenges, living in the past and also the future, with little or no love for themselves and or any idea what happiness really means to them, with circles of friends that most often are just along for the ride and then I look at what I see in the eyes of people in countries like Bhutan where their GDP as a country is based on ‘Gross National Happiness’, these people are not rich, they don’t have all the ‘fancy’ things in life, but they do have happiness, they live in the ‘now’, they have love in their hearts, they hold compassion for others and they are successful because each and every day for them is a ‘gift’ and they hold that as a measurement of their success.

Success to me means happiness, happiness means understanding who I am and holding love for myself, giving love to others, being grateful for what I have in my life and doing my best to give something back to my community, to humanity and to mother earth.

I may sound idealistic but that for me is success!

How about you?

Namaste, with Love

Always

Mark