Success defined

There is no definition of success without putting it into context.

That context could be our age. In our twenties, what success looks and feels like may be radically different from what it looks like in our fifties. Or our circumstances, like: are we being bombed daily, or do we have access to the internet, or clean water, or have we been raised surrounded by access to excellent education, health care, people with influence? 

One thing that is common to all definitions of success is the entanglement we make of it with expectations. Load our definition of success with overwhelming expectations, and each day, before we place our bare feet upon the floor, we have failed. 

As we mature, and hopefully become wiser, we recalibrate our expectations to the level that every day we experience delight and joy in the smallest of things. This recalibration allows our definition of success to also mature. 

Mature success begins with a deep-seated satisfaction and fulfilment with who we are, what we choose, and how we respond to all types of unforeseen events and incidents. It is not as dependent on status or accumulation. We return to our deepest desires. To be loved. To love. The amazing quality of our relationships. To experience beauty and awe every day. To laugh often. To be able to participate in the simplest of things. Like walking and dancing.

In a world that actively encourages a deep addiction to accumulation, status symbols and dominating power, we might seize the reins of our life from the hands of the manipulators. 

Exploring, with deep curiosity, what success means to us, and returning to this enquiry as life progresses, is to explore our sovereign choice-making against the manipulating powers of the algorithm and culture.

This is to discover both our agency, freedom and joy.

Published August 5th 2026. Photo taken August 5th 2026