I’ve been thinking a lot about what success means since the SBS event in February. It was great to meet so many amazing business owners, many of whom have gone into business to enable them to have a better work-life balance or to meet a gap in the market they have spotted due to personal circumstances.
This made me wonder how we all define success – society often defines it as wealth, power, and material possessions and often in business this can be seen as the only definition that matters, however, what if we dig deeper into the reasons why people start their businesses and then look at those as a measure of success – surely this would give us a much more rounded definition and one that is more personal to us and our circumstances.
Why defining what we mean by success is important
There are several reasons why defining success is important, it can:
Help you to establish your priorities: When you have a clear understanding of what success means to you, you can avoid distractions and focus on what truly matters.
Provide motivation: When you have a clear definition of success, you can set goals and work towards achieving them. This can provide a sense of purpose and motivation, helping you to stay on track and make progress toward your goals.
Reduces stress and anxiety: When you define success for yourself, you are less likely to compare yourself to others or feel pressure to meet external standards of success. This can reduce stress and anxiety and help you feel more content and fulfilled in your life.
Defining success for yourself can have a significant impact on your life
As if being less stressed and anxious from comparing yourself to others wasn’t enough, there are some other benefits of understanding what success means to you.
Defining success for yourself requires introspection and self-reflection. This can help you better understand your own values, strengths, and weaknesses and help you to make better choices in your life. When you learn to be more self-reflective and develop those skills, you can use them in other areas of your life – such as with your work and finding ways to improve on what you do.
It’s easier to align your goals with your personal values and aspirations when you know what success means to you. This can give you a greater sense of purpose and direction in your life, along with increased satisfaction and happiness. You’re living life on your terms aligned with what you believe.
What success looks like for me
When I started my business 9 years ago, all I wanted was to get a better balance for my family and earn a little money (really enough to replace my part-time salary – which after childcare left me with around £500 a month) – I didn’t really have any focus on financial goals at that point as it was all about flexibility for me. I did however find I wasn’t taken seriously and it has taken me a long time to realise that even in those early days I was successful as I was out there getting clients and balancing motherhood at the same time.
9 years on, I work full time, have a great turnover for the hours I work and I am happy! However, I continue to put my family at the heart of my business decisions as I want to ensure that I can continue to be the Mum and Wife I want to be as well as running my successful business.
Success, for me, is about being able to take my daughters to school and after-school clubs without work commitments getting in the way. It’s about being able to have dinner together as a family every evening rather than having to face a commute home that means I don’t get in until the girl’s bedtime.
A big one for my family is being able to travel together. I’m something of a ‘digital nomad’ and being able to build my business into something I can do on the road while traveling without it affecting my family or my clients, is a huge source of pride for me.
Yes, money is important but flexibility is more important to me. It’s this principle that I’m keen to share with others and let them know that they too can define what success means to them and be successful.
I’d love to hear other SBS winners views on this – do you think success is all about money, or is it more than that?
