What is Success?
Read More: Is success measured by how much money a person makes?
I received an email today that really unnerved me. It wasn't what was said, but the general overtone of the letter that got to me. I believe the person's intent was to get me to distrust my upline and my mentors, but I learned from my past mistakes. I did my homework this time and I know I'm with a good company now, and I have no doubt I will do well in this business.
I was rather upset, though, by the actions this person suggested I take. I was told that I should contact my upline and ask them to show me their checks in order to prove their success to me. I was completely baffled by this... I mean what kind of person asks to see another person's check to begin with. A person's income is their own business as far as I'm concerned and I have no desire to know how much my upline makes.
I had a hard time figuring out why this bothered me so much, though, and then while I was doing some dishes it hit me. There are so many people who define success based on how much money they or others are making, but is that really the mark of success? I know a lot of people who make a lot of money (offline) and I can't say that many of them are truly happy with their lives and their lifestyle.
So if money isn't the mark of success then what is?
That's when I started considering what it was about my mentors that make me admire them. Every single one of them is focused on making themselves a better person every single day. They are devoted to educating themselves not only in the area of marketing, but in living a healthier lifestyle, replacing negative thoughts with positive ones, and building good relationships with those around them. And more than that, they are dedicated to helping others to attain the same things for themselves without expecting anything in return.
I'm in contact with my upline and mentors every day, and they are such uplifting people. It doesn't matter what my mood is, they always make me feel better about myself and where I am heading. In just the last couple of weeks I have seen so much improvement in how I view the world and where I am in my life... and it's all because of their influence on me because of how they are learning and growing themselves.
Success has nothing to do with the money. It has to do with how you live your life. It has to do with how much effort you put into your personal growth every single day. It has to do with how you affect those around you... are you uplifting them or bringing them down? Success is all about whether you are able to attract the things you desire in life because you have achieved all of these other things. Maybe one of those things might be money, but it's also the friendships, the time you get to spend with family, the places you get to visit, and all the other wonderful things you achieve because you simply took the time to better yourself as a person and help others achieve the same.
If you want to make a million dollars, you have to learn from a millionaire... but if you want to be a success, then you have to learn from someone who is successful. I choose the latter... after all, what's the point in having money if you haven't learned how to appreciate what it can do for you!
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Comments: 10 
About the Author: Renee Scattergood
Member Since: 01/15/2009
Industry: No Industry Selected
Primary Web Site: http://reneescattergood.com
Wrong Misconception Of Success
Success is not defined by the amount of physical cash a person has but the some totality of the improved differences that has transpired in the life of a person over a given period of time. Success goes far beyond just money but the number of life you have affected positively with your thoughts, words deed or action. Personal success comes from making a dynamic change from a static motion in life.
Renne thank you for sharing this.. a lot of individuals have gotten a wrong conception of the meaning of success and so much equated it to just material wealth. in as much as wealth is a part of it, it is not the totality
Co-Partner With Success Louis Redemption
Renee
If you got into network marketing to change your financial picture than success is making money. If you got into your MLM opportunity to become a better person than that is success to you. What I find deceitful is when someone talks about how successful they are or you will become if you join them and the perception is that their success is financial than that is a problem and deceitful.
Sharing your success story should be clear. Are you or your upline successful because you learned you need to do personal development and have a positive attitude every day or are you or your upline successful because they have realized their financial dreams? BIG difference.
To your success, whatever you choose that to be.
Joyce Penner
www.joycepenner.com
All that from doing the dishes- Wow! ;-)
I want to thank all of you for sharing YOUR definition of success. It is a matter of personal choice and I believe can include many of the ideals posed here.
Success, as per dictionary.com is: "The favorable or prosperous termination of anything attempted; the attainment of a proposed object; prosperous issue."
So arguing that success is the attainment of money is valid. Arguing that success is the number of friends you have accumulated is also valid. It is personal and based upon your dreams, goals, desires and belief.
The question I'd like to pose is this:
Why are you in business? Why are you in network marketing? If it is to make friends you are not really in business.
When you signed up in your company it was NOT because your reward was going to be racking up a roster of friends.
Nope, you were told about residual income, fast start bonuses and the other 18 ways to make money by signing up and sign up others. You were told about dreaming of and affording the life style of the rich and famous. That is what enticed you to become a networker, the golden carrot, not some promise of friendship.
Now don't go down that path. I am all FOR collecting and keeping friends close to you. It has turned out that I have made new and wonderful friends through nwm, BUT that is NOT the reason I am in this business. I do not measure my success in network marketing by the depth and breadth of my friends.
Don't confuse personal success and the reason you are in this business. If you are being taught altruism, selflessness and want desperately enough to help others expecting nothing in return, great, that's fine. It's your life. But, can you help me out? I need a new car.
RICK
The Great Divide
Renee,
The next time you head into the kitchen to do the dishes, ask yourself what is it, specifically, that you were hoping to be successful at when you joined your network marketing company.
Did you honestly get into network marketing thinking that it doesn't matter if you never make one thin dime? That you'd be totally satisfied and completely fulfilled to meet wonderful people and create dozens of lasting friendships? If so, that's great. As Joyce Penner commented, it's your choice. And as Rick Lelchuk commented, it's your life.
Maybe you paid your sign-up fee and committed to purchasing your autoship every month so you could have the opportunity to work on personal development. That's okay, too. Although if personal development was your "why" for joining a business opportunity, I've got to tell you that there's all kinds of programs and courses available to you for personal development and some of them are free.
There's a Great Divide between "Social Networking" and "Network Marketing" ... a BIG difference. It sounds to me like your focus is mainly on socializing and developing friendships and, in the process, becoming a better person. Nothing wrong with that.
Building a network marketing business is a horse of a different color. It's about creating a paycheck for yourself and working to change your financial picture.
I'm not ashamed to say that I'm in network marketing to make money ... I thought everybody was!
Melanie
Actually, Rick
Believe it or not... I joined my company because I made a friend. I joined my company because I first learned some great things about the Network Marketing Industry from my new friend. From that I decided to ask him what business he was with... he never approached me about it at all. That's the power of friendship and how friendship can help you grow your business.
Business and friendship can go hand in hand... it doesn't have to be separate like most people think.
Great post Renee
Yes I agree with you that success does not mean just the money...but it is part of the equation & what I mean by that it's the things you can do with the money. Success means different things to different people. For me success could be buying my mom a house but for you success could be donating to a charity... but we agree that it takes money to do that. I read a quote once, I forget who said it but it goes like this: "Money it's not everything, but it's right up there with oxygen"... lol. Anyways, being successful to me means being grateful for what I have right now, my mom & dad, my husband, my health, just being alive & assesing where I want to be & the things I want to accomplish with the money that I generate.
Just my 2 cents worth ;-)
Giselle
Your Magnetic Formula
Wow you are a Truely Amazing Woman
That is exactly how I feel. Success is based on how many People I help feel good about themselves. Thank you
Your are a Leader and Mentor with a Servants heart
Your Friend for Life Juanita Waterman
Don't listen to the naysayers Renee...
...you are absolutely right about the true definition of success!
Money is only one ingredient, that signifies that you have attained or are in the process of attaining success, but success is SO MUCH MORE than just the money!
...and I'm glad you know that. :)
Abundance & Prosperity in all you do,
Randy Enman
Great Post and Great Points
I think the definitions Rick gave are valid. As are the other points made.
It's not meaning of the word here that is important to me so much as how we acieve that success. Now asking someone else to show me proof of their financial success is not something I would do.
I look at it this way. None of us will achieve success with out action. We all have to do something to get there. Renee you are right in doing your diligence and finding out what it is you are getting into. You have to believe in, and have faith in what you are doing and or selling before you can actually do it successfully. It's not how much someone else is making in this industry. It's how much success can you achieve. Not all systems and programs are right for everybody. It has to fit you. And you have to become the product. With the vast amount of programs, products, and opportunities out there you have to make it your own.
Got at little side tracked there. But the bottom line is that you have to create your own success. You won't become successful just because someone else made this much money or sponsered that many. It's all in what you do. And how you do it. And by giving, so shall you recieve. Based on your insights about the e-mail Renee, you will be one of the success stories.
All the best,
Bill Rowe
Thanks Bill
I appreciate your comment! I agree that how we get there is definitely important, and it is important to take action. I suppose the biggest reason for this article was for me to vent my angst in getting that email. I can't understand people who claim to be a leader/mentor and then tell people to do things that are completely unethical (to me telling someone to ask to see their upline's check is without a doubt unethical). And I don't understand people who base their level of success solely on their income... when I know for a fact that just because a person has a lot of money it doesn't make them successful (I've know unsuccessful wealthy people... in fact, one of them that I know of is a drunken bum. You'd never know he was a millionaire by looking at him).
It seems that some of the people who commented assumed that I was saying that money isn't important, and that I'm not doing this for the money, but had they read the article entirely, they would have seen that I was merely saying that money is not the mark of success... like I've said before... it's merely a byproduct of success. Do I want to make money? Of course, I do. Do I believe I'll make money if that's all I focus on? Absolutely not.