Success

I've just got done tutoring a student and he had the most insightful definition of success: "Anything productive done for yourself, your family, or society." When I asked why he thought that, he said "because most people are successful but can't achieve fame or fortune, and as long as you're not doing anything unproductive toward yourself or others, then you are achieving success". I think that is a very insightful response.

Often, we think success lies in how well we do when compared to others (i.e. a letter grade) or that it happens when we achieve major goals (i.e. degrees of higher education). But this young man's definition wants us to believe that every time we attend a class session or turn in our assignments - that is success! And I believe he is justified in saying that not everyone can get the A or get a masters degree. I think that success isn't about what we can accomplish but what we are accomplishing in the here and the now.

So, is success more a set of accomplishments and credits that we strive for and once attained, sit on like laurels? Or is it something we can do every day, in every moment, knowing that there is a "no-judge" opportunity to be productive or unproductive at all times?