Successive Success

At first thought, success is usually defined by quantifiable and tangible things--the number of cars one drives, the number of degrees from ivy leagues one holds, or the number of Nobel Prizes one has won. When I first thought about what success was to me, I first thought about the accumulation of things and accolades....but this doesn't characterize what success it, rather they are indicators of achieving certain goals.

Going against my (somewhat misguided) intuition, success isn't defined as doing most things better than others—that’s the end result of success, not the core of it. Success is and begins at the individual, at the internal level before public applauds are given.

Success is liking yourself, liking what you do, and liking how you do it —Maya Angelou

I interjected Maya Angelou's quote here, not only for a progressive-new age blog feel, but also because I couldn't have put it any better myself. As cliché as it sounds, being proud and enjoying what you do and who you are will allow you to do everything better. You'll have the passion confidence and be empowered to do amazing things. Success is internal, all the material rewards that may or may not come are just laudatory from the outside commending you on how you enjoy and handle your aspects.

Right now I get a lot of questions about what I want to do after school and what opportunities do I have in the real world not being a pre med or engineering student. I could do engineering. I could be training to be a doctor.  But would I reach my full potential? Probably not. I love what I'm studying and I love the world perspective I'm gaining. I see a lot of people forcing themselves into studying subjects that they feel will have the biggest payoff, all the while not enjoying what they're doing. I don't have a major where I'm guaranteed a six-figure salary, but I'm doing what I want to do. And I may have not received a car or a Nobel Prize, but I assured that I am successful in who I'm becoming over the past 2+ years here at Ohio State.