|
I would appreciate knowing what people believe is a 'successful' or 'good life. Is it a personal/individual thing or can we agree on saying a certain person has been 'successful' or a 'winner in life'? Of course many people believe that the successful person is the one who is wealthy, famous and on top of their career etc. Others say that this kind of success is not important and it is about family and relationships and if you are happy there then you are a 'winner'. Others say it's about being 'happy' in yourself and it's an inner state. Still others say it's a spiritual affair and you are successful if you are kind, considerate and contributing to others. So what is having had a successful life? Perhaps being truly 'successful' in life is having all of these? I sometimes feel that in many of the ways that matter externally my life hasn't been a success and yet my dad for example says he sees me as a very successful person as he says I have many good qualities and virtues and to him that is success in this life not the material things. Who is that can say at the end of their life that they've lived a good and successful life? I'm sure there is much written about this but would love to hear what you all think. :-) |
|
I'd say it's a fairly impossible question to answer because every person has their own internal definition of "success". Speaking, however, from a metaphysical perspective, if it is true that we project ourselves into physical reality for the experience of it then a successful life (from the viewpoint of one's Broader Self) could be defined as one with plenty of varied physical experiences. But since one's Physical Self also makes up the other part of You (though, in reality, it is not a separate entity from Broader Self), it would seem unfair for the Broader Self to get what it wants at the expense of the Physical Self. So perhaps a better definition of a successful life would be plenty of joyful physical experiences...so the Physical Self gets to have some good stuff too :) |
|
He who can say at the end of his life that he lived a successful life is the one who followed his hearth. Success is having courage to do what your heart tells you. It is not a destination. It is a proccess that never ends. It is a journey of YOU. Simple. That is a success for me. |
|
to answer your question success is in the eye of the beholder, some see success as material thing and outside things., some other see success as something inside spiritual and success only on the outside as something that is vain. they are growing in their understanding as long as they are happy about the choice they make to their own level of understanding and seek to improve them self. why make comparison? to make some of them not happy? to make them open their eye on what they do not want to see, what as not touched their mind. for some they will find it helpful and for some that level is out of their reach for the moment and they do not want to see it and it will probably not make them happy. so let them progress at their own level. some are intoxicated and not thirsty, some are thirsty, some have started to drink water, some have started to see the light, some the water and the light became one, some went above, and some came back down for a little while. and each on their how level have been successful in something in their own eye and will continue to improve them self and it is ok. Let there be light, be the light that you can be, experience and enjoy. |
|
Hi Inner Beauty :) What a beauty of a nickname you have :) Your question reminded me of the sweet movie I recently watched, The Shift from Ambition to Meaning, I highly recommend it to you, I think it contains the basis of how and why people judge about their success. It starts with what we associate ourselves with: with what we have, with what we do, with what we achieve, etc. The thing I severely disagree with Wayne on, is his "it's always about serving": for me it's always about pleasure. I'd agree with AH that say that success is purely the amount of joy that you have. I wouldn't say, joyful physical experiences, as this is still forcing it and trying to get it outside, for me. And joy is absolutely available in every moment, you Inner Beauty should know :) But (or as Bashar says, AND) I want to go deeper and suggest a question for you - why is it important to you, what is said about your life, if it is successful? Maybe it's related to that Ambition to Meaning shift as well. When you're purely happy, do you care to be successful? When you're in the Vortex, what is the answer you see then? I love you ♥ :) P.S. By the way write to me (it removes email address, so maybe from contact form here), I do have some chapters to share with you :) Thank you @Olga!! This has all made me realise that success is living a joyful life, but that joy is not necessarily 'physical'- Perhaps it is having had those peak experiences in your life that include that connection with the Divine or something beyond yourself nature etc.
(12 Sep '15, 05:35)
Inner Beauty
|
|
A successful life is a happy life. Why do people make compete with others to be "right" or "better" anyway? They believe that doing so will bring happiness. It's better to be "happy", than to be arguing of fighting to be "right". first of all people are divided in them self and with other. and it is often their own choice for many, they want to be better then other the ego is at play. if they would open their eye and see that it does not make them better it makes them worse since they divide them self and they shut their eye and ears to not see. and even if you would tell them they could not accept it. even if you tell them the truth or show them the fact, the proof what is and where they made some error or lack-
(22 Sep '15, 10:22)
white tiger
understanding knowledge and experience. they do not want to see it. it is not new it was like this over 2000 year ago read the bible If you were blind, you would not be guilty of sin; but now that you claim you can see, your guilt remains. http://biblehub.com/john/9-41.htm If the blind lead the blind, both will fall into a pit." http://biblehub.com/matthew/15-14.htm For this people's heart has become calloused; they hardly hear with their ears, and they have closed their eyes.-
(22 Sep '15, 10:31)
white tiger
Otherwise they might see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their hearts and turn, and I would heal them. But blessed are your eyes because they see, and your ears because they hear. http://biblehub.com/matthew/13-15.htm The eye is the lamp of the body. If your eyes are healthy, your whole body will be full of light. But if your eyes are unhealthy, your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light within you is darkness, how great is that darkness!-
(22 Sep '15, 10:37)
white tiger
showing 2 of 3
show 1 more comments
|
|
I'd say that success is merely a state of mind. To quote Mandino, "Which two, among a thousand of wise men will define success in the same words; yet failure is always described in one way. Failure is man's inability reach his goals in life, whatever they may be. 1
Hi @EloiseC I assume you're referring to Og Mandino, the man who drove himself almost to suicide and later largely inspired by The Bible and Napoleon Hill, became a successful writer :)
(13 Oct '15, 02:19)
jaz
Hi @jaz yes, that's right. Have you read one of his books? I find his scrolls very inspiring and I'm about to finish to memorize the first one verbatim.
(14 Oct '15, 14:19)
EloiseC
2
@EloiseC success is not about reaching a goals. you see often people are only fixated on the target the goal and they miss what is more important. they run all their life for a goal making sacrifice and once they reach it they are often not happy and do not enjoy it as much as they though some think about all the other opportunity they add they turn around and look where they come from and it is all ready past away. better to enjoy the present moment and do the best you can, then run after-
(15 Oct '15, 01:01)
white tiger
1
a future goal and loose your past and present in the long run because you are to fixated on a goal.
(15 Oct '15, 01:02)
white tiger
1
@EloiseC I've fully studied Think and Grow Rich by Napoleon Hill and as a child I was Bible educated however I've never read any Og Mandino works :)
(15 Oct '15, 01:47)
jaz
yes @white tiger fixated targets are most often imagined pathways into what people really want, that is to be fully aware centered in the "now".
(15 Oct '15, 01:52)
jaz
1
@white tiger I share your perspective. It's like this: "The good life is a process, not a state of being. It is a direction not a destination." Some people get so lost in their rally for success that they ignore the friction around them. It's good make the journey part of the success, enjoy the success-landscapes on the way
(15 Oct '15, 11:15)
EloiseC
1
"It is a direction not a destination" I very much enjoy this phrase @EloiseC, the first time I got real longlasting life changing results was after seriously reading, studying and consciously applying "The Lazy Man's Way to Riches" by Joe Karbo.
(16 Oct '15, 03:36)
jaz
@jaz - I read his book. You practice the visualization techniques and the affirmations?
(19 Oct '15, 04:56)
EloiseC
showing 2 of 10
show 8 more comments
|
|
I like this quote: "Success? I don't know what that word means. I'm happy. But success, that goes back to what in somebody's eyes success means. For me, success is inner peace. That's a good day for me." Denzel Washington If we are given only one life, then success would be very important. But what if we live many lives? Then success is perhaps not as important as it may seem. What would matter then is if we learn to be at peace within ourselves, doing what gives us inner peace, inner joy. Why would this be so? Because just living for success means doing what society deems "successful". But one can be "successful" and be miserable. Achieving peace within ourselves has nothing at all to do with what others think. I spent the greater part of my early life trying to be successful. I was miserable because I only cared what others thought about what I was doing with my life. Now, I am feeling much happier because I have given the idea of success a back seat to inner peace. Since I have done that, I have been much happier. Now I care more about how others are doing, and if they are happy. I cannot have inner peace if I ignore the plight of others. For example, I cannot feel peace if Wade is feeling bad. I find myself trying to help him. In doing that, I find that I am much more at peace with myself. I now could care less if others think I am living successfully. I just try to stick to my own backyard. I wasted a lot of time chasing success. I leave that to others. My world is small, and I now feel peaceful. I love the feeling. Blessings, Jaianniah Thank you @Jaianniah. A beautiful answer.
(23 Oct '15, 08:57)
Inner Beauty
|
If you are seeing this message then the Inward Quest system has noticed that your web browser is behaving in an unusual way and is now blocking your active participation in this site for security reasons. As a result, among other things, you may find that you are unable to answer any questions or leave any comments. Unusual browser behavior is often caused by add-ons (ad-blocking, privacy etc) that interfere with the operation of our website. If you have installed these kinds of add-ons, we suggest you disable them for this website
