On Success

There are many aspects to the big topic of 'success', clearly. Certainly one is knowing what it is for you or your firm. But once you do, how do you get it? How do you become 'succesful'? There are plenty-an abundance-of suggestions on the topic whatever you are trying to achieve:

• learning to juggle three balls;
• getting the perfect job;
• resolving that re-current tiredness;
• launching a winning car-hire company;
• re-establishing dialogue with your teenage daughter

One of the dilemmas of school and college is that it increasingly seems that 'everyone must win' and the chance of having success at something are increasingly high. (BTW: you might want to read All Must Have Prizes by Melanie Phillips). Prize givings can cover just about every student, which makes for a very long session. Here is not the time nor place to debate whether that is right or wrong (which parent-after all-does not want their child to 'be recognised'?), but it does have consequences. College life-even on an MBA-does its best to ensure all can get some 'signicant wins' by re-shuffling the measurement criteria. Again which college wants to be known for failing (in every sense) its students?

But there is a drawback to 'easy' success. We begin to feel that the rare collision of hard work, circumstances, the gods looking favourably upon us, super-smart thinking, dripping biceps and a fair wind happens more often that perhaps it really does. Enter the world of work, add a very tough backdrop to that world of work and a former 'easy winner' can easily despair, give up and blame others far too soon. We simply are not tough enough as a consequence of a diet of the wrong kind of success.

It's worth re-calibrating success. You'll get it but it's meant to be special. That's damn special.