How do we measure success? Do we recognize all our successes? Why is success so important to every human being? Do we know how to capture momentum?

I can confidently say I know the meaning of success because I have lived it and continue to live it.  It is very important to recognize your own success and be proud of it no matter how small it may seem.  Even if no one else around you recognizes your success and even if you do not get the response you are hoping for. Feel good about yourself nonetheless, because ‘YOU DID IT!!’

The feeling of success is a unique one.  Although there is great similarity to our feelings, but we know that feeling we get when we are so proud of ourselves and the world seems to be so beautiful and we feel like we are on cloud nine and nothing can stop us now.

I want to share with you my success story thus far.  Even though it is a private story but it would not mean as much to me if I do not share it and hopefully motivate you to see the possibilities in your lives and how you can capture that momentum – which can lead you to the ‘unknown land’. The land of opportunity, the land of hope, the land of living life with no fears and loving with no limits.

Without going into super details, my success story begins from the moment I made a conscious decision that I am capable of succeeding.  I was around the age of 19 at the time and I took a path that had the right attitude towards success but unfortunately took the wrong road to get there.  With that said, I suffered the consequences of my new-found ambition.  Let’s say I fell on face – hard. It took me a couple of years struggling to get back up and find myself in the midst of hardship.

At the age of 21, I started over.  I put a new plan and I took a new path and the road to success continued or I can say started all over again.  At that time, I was going through a lot of emotional set backs but I did not allow it to get to me.  I was determined to cross to the finish line this time.  I started a career path that was never in my desires or ambitions.  I followed that road for years and in the back of my mind, I knew that things will not be this way forever.  I kept convincing myself that what I am doing now is justified and will only be temporary until I get to my ultimate goal.   I had a dream.  I wanted to be a business owner.  I started to get the necessary education in the field I was passionate about.  I did so much research and I had so many conversations with people about my hopes and dreams.  I got different feedbacks.  Some supported and encouraged me and some opposed me, belittled me and put me down.  I struggled with different emotions.  I felt like I always needed approval from the people in my life.  There were times when their comments shook me and caused me to doubt myself and what I was capable of doing.  Again things would miraculously happen in my life and I would meet people along the way – I call them ‘angels’ – that would steer me back to my dreams and desires.  I find myself getting a push to move forward and to start believing again.

And so there came a point in my life when I got tired of hearing myself say: “it’s only temporary”.  I asked myself: “How long will I be in this temporary stage? – When will I take a leap of faith? – When will I ever take action? – What am I waiting for??”

I call that the ‘climax’ of my life story.  A climax as we all know it as a moment of intensity or a great event that takes place in which it would be the turning point; where things would never be the same.

Ultimately, that turning point in my life led me to make certain decisions and change my plan all over again and I took certain actions that would have no turning back.  I willingly made those choices with the intent to pursue my dreams.  I did not even have a back up plan in case things do not work out.  I was so confident that it would all work out the way I planned it.

Being at that point in my late twenties, I felt some pressure that I needed to make things happen for myself.  I was tired of feeling like I failed.  I was tired of being criticized.  I was just fed up of making a plan and it blows in my face.  In a way, I was probably too aggressive and too determined to change my life at the same time at any cost.  And did it ever cost me!

I paid a dear price at the end, in my professional life and in my personal one.  I see now that I was too caught up in my life and I got lost along the way. I became more stubborn than determined.  I wanted to prove myself to those who doubted me and questioned my success.  I became almost obsessed about getting what I want.  Although I believed that what is meant to be will be and although I have a strong faith in God, I still got lost in my fixation to make things happen my way and on my time.  That is when I learned one of the most valuable lessons of my life.  I may want something so bad and I may do a lot of things to get to that result and I may even move heaven and earth for it – but if it is not the right time for it – no matter what I do – it will not work out.

There is nothing wrong with my dreams and ambitions.  There is nothing wrong in pursuing them.  There is however another important ingredient that goes along with those things and that is ‘blind faith’.  Blind faith is when you just know in your heart, that things will happen at the right time, the right place, in the right way that is in harmony with your purpose of being on earth to begin with.

I learned this lesson because of what I am now accomplishing. Some may view my life as a failure, some may see it as I am just taking a step in the right direction but what matters is how I see it.  I see it as SUCCESS.  I may have not reached to the ultimate goal that I had planned for years, I may not have much material proof of my success.  But my success is not measured by materials and it is not measured by the end result.  It is my will to succeed that keeps me going.  It is the journey that I started over ten years ago.  It is the lessons I learned along the way.  It is learning from the mistakes I made.  It is in admitting that I was wrong at times.  It is in saying “I’m sorry” to those whom I have hurt.  It is in looking towards the future and allowing the past to remain there – in the past.  It is in appreciating every little accomplishment I make along the way.  It is in never giving up.  It is in being happy with what I have now.  It is in continuing to work towards my dreams and goals.  It is in understanding that what is good for me, will happen and what is not, will not happen.

I have this blind faith that God is looking out for me.  That the path I am now on is heading into the right direction, because my feelings are different.  I am no longer obsessed, I am just determined.  I am no longer stubborn about getting what I want and only what I want, I am just accepting whatever comes my way and I am open to new ideas and new plans.  I am willing to go along with life and see where it will take me – of course with some what of a plan in mind and with goals to accomplish.  However, if things change along the way, I am ok with it.  I know it will be for my best interest in the long run.

In a month time from now, my life is heading into a new direction – a positive direction.  It is not happening overnight.  It was a long time in the making. I am very excited for this new chapter in my life. This week, I accomplished one of my dreams.  An opportunity presented itself to me and I grabbed it.  I am surrounded by angels who are protecting me and leading me to the path of great success.

I conclude by saying that Success is an outcome that people strive to obtain in their lives as it is an indication of who they are and what kind of life they are leading.  Success is the story of our lives.  The ups and the downs we experience are the chapters that fill our book.  The message from that book is to believe in yourself and live to the best of your ability.  Accept the mistakes but learn from them. Know who you are and don’t allow other people’s opinions of you to change you or distract you from fulfilling your purpose in life.  Listen to your heart.  Follow your dreams.  Make sacrifices if necessary.  Enjoy your journey of life and absorb all that comes with it. Understand the difference in being determined from being stubborn.  Watch the signs that come your way.  Be ready when the opportunity of your lifetime comes knocking.  Walk the talk and fulfill your destiny.

I must share with you some of the Success quotes that inspire me:

“If you hear a voice within you say ‘you cannot paint,’ then by all means paint, and that voice will be silenced.”  ~~ Vincent Van Gogh ~~

“To laugh often and much; to win the respect of intelligent people and the affection of children; to earn the appreciation of honest critics and to endure the betrayal of false friends; to appreciate beauty; to find the best in others; to leave the world a bit better whether by a healthy child, a garden patch or a redeemed social condition; to know even one life has breathed easier because you have lived. This is to have succeeded. ” ~~ Ralph Waldo Emerson ~~

“I find the great thing in this world is not so much where we stand, as in what direction we are moving: To reach the port of heaven, we must sail sometimes with the wind and sometimes against it, but we must sail, and not drift, nor lie at anchor.”  ~~ Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr. ~~

“Keep away from people who try to belittle your ambitions. Small people always do that, but the really great make you feel that you, too, can become great.”  ~~ Mark Twain ~~

“What lies behind us and what lies before us are tiny matters compared to what lies within us.” ~~Ralph Waldo Emerson ~~