Making Success Work for You

In the last post, we redefined success to focus on the moments. We boldly reclaimed our power to define success for ourselves, and then created a definition that empowered us, instead of a definition that fatigues us. And that fatigue is the topic for today.

Fatigue is an indicator that we are going in the wrong direction. Have you ever stopped doing something you love and said, I am so fatigued from enjoying myself? Of course not. We reserve the word fatigued for when we are doing tasks that we do not want to do. We say, I feel fatigued, only when we are down and lacking hope. We use fatigue only when we are trying to show ourselves that we need to stop doing whatever is causing the fatigue and start doing something that energizes us.

Fatigue also helps us to see where we might be using someone else’s definition of success. Often, when I feel spent, I am working toward someone else’s goals. My employer’s demands. My family member’s projects. Someone besides me. And in general, that sort of work causes fatigue.

That fatigue is not a problem. It’s a helpful reminder that I could change my experience by adding in my own goals to the mix when I am doing work that is for the benefit of others. Here is how.

If your job fatigues you, focus on your end of the transaction, not your employer’s. In fact, begin to talk about your job as a two-way transaction, rather than a requirement. Here is how that sounds: I am choosing to go to work today because I want to get paid, and my employer pays me when I go to work. Easy peasy. This one shift, if you practiced it during your work day, would reduce your fatigue.

If you want to take this a step further, then take even more of your power back: Say, I am going to work today and my employer is lucky to have me, and I am grateful to be doing this job, over jobs I do not prefer. If you could create this habit of thinking, you would be less fatigued.

If you wanted to go further, then redefine what a successful work day looks like. You could, because you are that powerful, decide that a good workday involves a good lunch, chit chat with co-workers, and time in between meetings to recover. It’s totally up to you how you define what a good day looks like. You could say that an empty inbox, plus a series of tasks, make the day a positive. You do you. But understand that you get to decide what success looks like.

It’s totally up to you how you define what a good day looks like. You could say that an empty inbox, plus a series of tasks, make the day a positive. You do you. But understand that you get to decide what success looks like.

Once you create your definition, ask yourself, how can I make this easier to achieve? How could I make success more accessible on a daily basis? How can I set myself up for success with a definition of success?

I offered you my definition in the last post. Your definition will be as unique as you are, but here are a few reminders to help you create a definition that you can achieve every single day.

• Feelings of success breed more feelings of success. Start small.
• Success is something that, once achieved, sets you up for more success.
• Life is lived from the inside out. Only your definition of success matters.

Crafting your own definition of success does not negate your goals, your big dreams, or even your Soul Projects. Instead, each of those are more likely to be achieved if you create a string of successful days. Which is why I focus on the moments I feel good. I can now string together long strands of time where I am winning.