What is true success and how do we measure it?
November 2020
What might we do to achieve a happy and successful life and what characteristics do happy people share?
It's difficult to avoid mentioning the words 'happy' and 'successful' in the same breath as they're inextricably linked. That's because happiness is a by-product of a life lives well. Lived successfully across a number of areas.
In life, we need to achieve a range of goals rather than a single one that comes at the cost of all others. It's highly unlikely we'll describe someone who has created a vast amount of wealth as successful if the cost has been the wellbeing of their family and loved ones and their own.
From what we know, happy people work hard to achieve and maintain balance and harmony across four areas – their work, home, role in society and well-being.
According to research, around 40 per cent of our happiness is within our own control. That gives us a significant amount of influence.
As has been said by many wise minds, happiness is the by-product of a life lived well. It isn't the goal.
This is what US psychologist Abraham Maslow tells us using his hierarchy of needs. In 1943, he put forward that we have five needs. The first two are material and the other three are spiritual.
From the base up, they are:
1. Physiological: food, water, shelter, warmth;
2. Safety: security and protection from harm;
3. Love and relationships: to love and be loved, connection,
4. Esteem: respect;
5. Self-actualisation: fulfilling our potential.
This pyramid also shows us that if we are to have a meaningful life, it's important that we get our priorities in order. This means balancing those material needs and spiritual needs. We can be highly spiritual but we must be pragmatic, too. We have to be able to put food on the table first.
CHARACTERISTICS OF HAPPY PEOPLE
What about the characteristics of happy and successful people?
- They achieve balance. They know what matters to them,
- They feel able to control their destiny,
- They forge meaningful relationships,
- They're able to maintain a positive outlook,
- They show high degrees of resilience, learning from setbacks and continuing to strive and become stronger in the face of adversity.
Given that work is an area that has enormous influence, what can we do to ensure this is positive?
Research by Patricia Chen, Phoebe Ellsworth and Norbert Schwartz shows that there are one of two approaches we can adopt. We can follow our passion or we can find our passion.
Following our passion is about knowing your vocation is – going after that dream role and getting that perfect fit.
But, of course, many of us don't know what our vocation is and there are times when the jobs market is more challenging than we’d like it to be. The first piece of good news, according to the research, is that it's possible to cultivate a passion, a curiosity and a love of what you're currently doing.
Now, here’s the bonus: people who do this can soon be just as satisfied as those who landed their dream job at the beginning.
At the risk of sounding simplistic, when it comes to happiness and success, it really does boil down to our attitude and how we choose to measure our accomplishments.