I was recently asked to name just one thing that made success worth it from my perspective in the last 30 days of my life.  It was a thought provoking question… so here are my thoughts  😉

Success is always worth it.  You reap it’s benefits every moment of every day of your life… As long as you properly define success.

If one defines success in only monetary terms, it becomes and objective that can destroy them and everything they hold dear.
It all depends on what we mean by success.  Success is different a completely different animal depending on who you ask, when you ask, what their current situation is and their stage of life at the time of the question.

My personal definition of success today, is DRAMATICALLY different than what it was 20 years ago. For a fuller personal perspective see the article http://allsolutionsnetwork.org/blog/what-is-success/
A successful marriage, happy family, and good friends are all important and the rewards we reap are obvious. A successful business brings a different type of reward, one of them being that it “helps” with the others.

*The wife is happier if I can take the family out to dinner more often.
*My 10 year old son likes that I can take him to see the newest spider man movie :-),
*My friends like it if I can occassionally pick up the tab :-)…

However, anyone that works so hard to achieve financial success that they destroy a successful family IS AN ABSOLUTE FOOL AND ABJECT FAILURE!

You don’t have to have money to be happy or successful. Some of the happiest days of my existence were when the limits of my wealth were such that I could occassionally eat at a Mexican restaurant. I played my guitar in clubs at night and I rode my bike on the river trails during the day. I don’t care what anyone says… I WAS SUCCESSFUL!

Real success IS NOT ABOUT MONEY. It’s about creating a balance that lets you live the life you choose.

All the MONEY in the world is useless if you don’t have the time to enjoy it.
All the TIME in the world is useless if you don’t have the money to enjoy it. It’s about BALANCE.

When I speak of success, I’m rarely specically referencing money; I’m really referring to achieving the things that we feel are important.  It varies for each of us… that’s what success is.

And no matter what your definition of success is, there are always set backs, it always requires focusing on the objective, consistent effort, overcoming battles, etc…  Whether your goal is a happy wife or a fat wallet the traits and principles that are required to achieve them are often the same.

So, to the Question What has “monetary” success given me in the last 30 days that made it worth it?

The ability to spend quality time with my family, basking around the pool, camping in the RV, minimizing the stress that financial pressures create, etc…

It shouldn’t be this way but we all know that financial stress is at the root of many family problems.

My whole life I have believed that if you love each other, money shouldn’t matter. However, life and statistics often indicate, otherwise.

Not being broke allows me to do things with my family that build and nurture our relationship and secure our future.

IT’S NEVER ABOUT THE THINGS THAT MONEY CAN BUY.  Success should never be measured by just the “things” you can get, but by the life you live…

Financial success should be about what it allows you to do for others, for cementing relationships and doing the things that matter…at least, that’s how I see it.

What do you think?