I see people all around me trying desperately to march to the tune of self-help and motivational books that lead to the promised pot of gold at the end of the rainbow, labeled “Success”. How often do we hear about someone who is termed “successful” and held up as a stellar example to our puny selves? Almost every day. And, in almost all the cases cited, success definitely is related to having loads of cash, which is automatically perceived to be the source of happiness. Waking up early in the morning, following some habits of effective people, and having a high EI quotient seem to lead to success. Come on, not everyone can be Einstein or Beethoven or Elon Musk.

I’ve been asking myself lately that what if success isn’t always related to money and fame? How would the world be if each of its 7.6 billion people were successful? How does one define success? Why has this thing called success been given an elusive garb and who has set everyone else on the path to this Holy Grail?

Most people will not agree with me when I say that every one of us is successful in our own way. And that it’s not necessarily related to the possession of loads of cash or property. I believe that success has different connotations for different people. I feel at the peak of personal success when an ex-colleague calls me up and says, “Nobody thinks or works now like the way you did” or “We talk about you almost every day”. If I can make one small difference in the life of someone by way of helping financially or by the way I behave or by guiding them, that’s success for me. I feel I’m successful when I implement the teachings of Nizamuddin Auliya, the venerated Sufi saint from Delhi. I felt extremely successful when I slowly started to give up the attraction for material possessions. I felt liberated when I ended up having fewer clothes, accessories, and other possessions. I admire the walls in our apartment that are devoid of any framed paintings or photographs. This feeling is a success in itself.

No, this blog is not all about me. Plenty of people are successful each day of their lives. Taking a nice picture is a success in itself. I’ll name a few others – waking up for dawn prayers, overcoming inhibitions to do what one likes to do no matter how late in life that is, walking away from a rotting relationship, having the guts to say no, making a perfect cup of tea, or running a marathon. Success need not be a string of events that lead to a concrete or an overwhelming outcome. It can be an abstract gratification. For some, success is avoiding the limelight successfully and carrying on to do good deeds without the need for any exhibitionism.

Success is about self-contentment. It lurks in every corner of our psyche but most of us choose to ignore it. Instead, we get on the bandwagon of competition and compare our lives to that of others who seem to be more successful in terms of happiness, money and/or fame.  Success is not what the media choose to show us. It’s inside us and it’s up to us to feel it and shelter it from the traditional image given to it.