The causes and effects of success in life

What is the true definition of success? Is it having millions in your bank account or the pride filled smile on a mother’s face as she gazes at her child? The oxford dictionary defines success as the accomplishment of an aim or purpose. Simply put, success is the good outcome of a plan or undertaking. This definition leaves room for interpretation as people generally have different aims or purposes in life.

That said, it is clear that there is no one set definition of success. To some success is achieving wealth and fame and to others success is a sense of fulfillment. Over the years, the true essence of success has been highly debated and from this debate different types of success have been distinguished. These types include – amongst others – success in family relationships, business success, personal success, health success and legacy success.  Just as the meaning of success differs from one person to the other, the hierarchy of the types of success differs as well. One might say that business success is the most important and another might say success in family relationships surpasses all the other types of success.

Although the definition of success differs from one individual to the other, the causes of success in life are set for all. To achieve and become successful, all individuals must apply themselves into achieving their aim or purpose. Hard work and discipline are the most common causes of a successful life. Recent study has shown that physical hard work, although paramount, is not the most essential cause of success but a person’s mindset and outlook on life is. Positivity, self believe, and an enlarged vision, are all important factors for achieving success, as well as the effective and efficient use of time.

With a combination of the above causes, success becomes easier to graft, and once one has achieved success, its effects in life begin to kick in. The best effect of success is the sense of satisfaction and fulfillment that comes with it. Unfortunately like most things in life, success too has its side effects which include changes in relationships, the constant battle of extreme highs and lows and the feeling that you must work even harder. This can result in depression or anxiety however it should not discourage from achieving success because as Steve Jobs says, “Have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow know what you truly want to become.”