What’s your version of success?
Success in the West is being famous, making six or seven figures, owning a couple of houses, getting married and having 2.2 kids. And it’s rammed down our throats non stop as the right and only version.
And then we wonder why so many people are miserable, empty, numb, questioning what elusive thing is missing from their lives. You, your true nature, your heart is missing.
Not always, of course. Not if you have been doing what you love, living in harmony with your true nature, creating your heart’s vision and fulfilling your purpose.
Spending time with warm-hearted people of Antigua, immersed in nature, living with the ocean I frequently hear very different versions of success. Success is being cool (meaning living peacefully), success is keeping it simple, success is appreciating life. The conveyor belt of required achievements is noticeably absent and with it the pressure to compete, perform, prove your worth, keep up, be good enough. You can breathe, let that all go, appreciate the simple wonders of life and connect to your own true version of success.
Guillaume Nery, world champion in free diving, can hold his breath for a staggering 7 minutes and 42 seconds and dive to 117 metres in one breath. In this short film shown recently at the Ocean Film Festival he declares a version of his success as “being in harmony with the ocean.”
I’m enjoying exploring many different versions of success, especially those beyond the Western norm, as they are freeing and inviting of our true nature. And let’s face it we are going to have to go way beyond the out of date heartless versions of success in the Western world for our culture and people to thrive and flourish.
My own version of success is allowing my heart to show me the way. This is when I’m connected to the divine, receiving inspiration, living from my higher nature and appreciating the wonders of life. I’m at my most creative, delightful surprises and magic unfolds, it’s fun and clear, enlivening and beauty is everywhere.
What’s your version? I’d love to hear.