the true meaning of success essay

The True Meaning of Success

Written by Steve Rose

Identity, purpose, and belonging, 38 comments(s).

On the go? Listen to the audio version of the article here:

What does success  really mean?

The media bombards us with messages that success means having money, power, privilege, or beauty.

Our parents have another idea of what success means, pushing for job security, financial stability, and raising well-adjusted children.

Success means something different for everyone, so what is the true meaning of success?

It means living in alignment with your personal definition of success by staying true to your values and taking meaningful actions toward your own valued goals.

In this article, I dive into the science and philosophy of what success really means and how it affects your level of satisfaction in life.

Table of Contents

The Meaning of Success in Modern Society 

“I want the money, money and the cars, cars and the clothes… I just wanna be successful. Trey Songz – Successful

When it comes down to it, “the good life” actually means a life of happiness. But where does happiness come from?

Media definition of success tells us it can be found in material possessions, status, and a life filled with luxury. But as many of us already know, these things can bring pleasure, but this version of happiness is like a bottomless pit, needing to be fueled by ever more stimulus to sustain it, eventually making us miserable.

A report by the Association for Psychological Science confirms this, finding:

“Simply having a bunch of things is not the key to happiness…[.] Our data show that you also need to appreciate those things you have. It’s also important to keep your desire for things you don’t own in check.”

But why do we continue to desire the infinite? Can we ever fill the void?

The answer is no.

Just like someone self-medicating with drugs or addictive behaviors, there is never enough.

Part of the desire for material possessions is the desire for acceptance from others. When the need for acceptance is unmet and we do not accept ourselves, we give up our own version of success for society’s definition.

Chuck Palahniuk says it best in Fight Club :

“The things you own end up owning you.”

Even though you may still feel like you’re in the driver seat of your life, you know deep down that you’re driving down the wrong road.

As the sense of resentment grows, the morphine drip of material comforts, social status, and security numbs this nagging feeling. As stated in Fight Club :

“We buy things we don’t need, to impress people we don’t like.”

Affluent society masks its hypocrisy with a veneer of politeness and good manners. Symbols of material success become symbols of moral success, disguising the state of moral lack. As William James said:

“The moral flabbiness born of the exclusive worship of the bitch-goddess SUCCESS. That – with the squalid cash interpretation put on the word ‘success’ – is our national disease.”

This false image of success keeps us always looking for more.

Bigger, better, smarter, faster, stronger, more attention, more  stuff ! The more we get, the more we want.

Émile Durkheim characterizes this state of moral flabbiness in the following way:

“Unlimited desires are insatiable by definition and insatiability is rightly considered a sign of morbidity. Being unlimited, they constantly and infinitely surpass the means at their command; they cannot be quenched. Inextinguishable thirst is constantly renewed torture.”

Drinking from the seductive cup of material success will only make you thirstier.

This classic sociological wisdom is backed by contemporary science. In a 2016 article on income and happiness, the author’s state find that happiness does increase as income rises, but gains diminish after a household income of  $80,000 a year. These gains reach zero at $200,000 a year.

Therefore, having a reasonable level of financial security reduces negative emotions, but the pursuit of infinite wealth does not contribute to happiness.

This finding has also been replicated on a broader level, looking at the correlation between a countries wealth and the happiness of its citizens. In this 2010 article , the authors state:

“…over the long-term, usually a period of 10 years or more, happiness does not increase as a country’s income rises.”

Similar to the previous study, happiness does decline in a state of economic contraction, likely due to a sense of financial insecurity. But in the long term, the pursuit of infinite wealth does not increase a countries happiness.

Let’s now turn to lessons from classic literature.

In  The Death of Ivan Ilych ,  Leo Tolstoy gives a tragic account of a man who wasted his whole life conforming to an empty social norm. On his deathbed, Ivan Illych comes to question the whole of his life. Had he been merely going through the prescribed motions? In the society depicted, success comes at the cost of meaningful human relations.

As stated by Psychologist Mark Freeman in his 1997 publication in Cambridge Journal’s Ageing & Society :

“Tolstoy’s book is about many things: the tyranny of bourgeois niceties, the terrible weak spots of the human heart, the primacy and elision of death. But more than anything, I would offer, it is about the consequences of living without meaning, that is, without a true and abiding connection to one’s life. “

A true and abiding connection to one’s life means living beyond the superficial success game.

Psychological science also backs this up.

In The Harvard Grant Study , the researchers studied the same group of men for nearly 80 years, trying to uncover what leads to a happier life, finding:

“Close relationships, more than money or fame, are what keep people happy throughout their lives, the study revealed. Those ties protect people from life’s discontents, help to delay mental and physical decline, and are better predictors of long and happy lives than social class, IQ, or even genes.”

Veterans returning from deployment know this better than anyone else.

Upon returning from a world where every decision means the difference between life and death, they are quick to diagnose our society’s individualism.

As one Canadian veteran I interviewed states:

“It’s hard to care about things you should care about in civilian life.”

Another states:

“There was just an overwhelming sense that nothing mattered”

Bryan Wood, a U.S veteran, mirrors this sentiment in his memoir, Unspoken Abandonment . After witnessing the profound tragedy of war, his sense of what mattered in life was uprooted. Referring to the conversations of co-workers he states:

“I couldn’t believe the kind of silly bullshit these people thought mattered in life. I couldn’t believe I once thought these same things were important.”

Another states :

“You’re used to doing things that mattered, and suddenly your life is simply digesting bullshit and consuming instead”

Consumer culture leads us away from the true and abiding connection to one’s life that comes with following our own definition of success.

To learn more about how my research on veterans informs my understanding of success in civilian life, you can check out my article, 6 Things Veterans Can Teach Us About Life .

A Deeper Understanding of Success

“ Ambition makes you look pretty ugly ” Radiohead

Imagine you are at a funeral.

A close friend of the deceased steps up to the pulpit and proceeds with the following eulogy:

He was a hard worker… highly organized and independent, a skilled communicator who could work well with others, detail-oriented, and was able to work efficiently in a fast-paced environment. He was a wise man, never received a grade lower than an A-, balanced a full course-load with extracurricular activities, and maintained a full scholarship throughout college. He was a loving man. He loved the sweet taste of victory every time he closed a deal. He was a committed man. He was always committed to the bottom line and he could consistently increase profits by 30% each quarter.

You would be startled by this friend who completely neglected the things that  actually  matter.

Rather than a eulogy, it would look as if the friend were speaking on behalf of the deceased for a postmortem job interview.

But if these things don’t  actually  matter, why do we spend the majority of our time focused on building these resume virtues while neglecting the eulogy virtues?

In  The Road to Character , David Brooks illustrates how we are living in an age increasingly dominated by the resume virtues. He argues that our increased focus on building our resumes has distracted us from deeper virtues.

These deeper virtues include a deep and abiding philosophy of life, the ability to love compassionately, and the ability to commit oneself to the discipline of service to a larger moral cause.

So what’s wrong with ambition and the desire to get ahead?

Nothing is wrong with having ambitions; the problem is having an unbalanced level of ambition associated with the resume virtues, while completely neglecting the eulogy virtues.

Consider a person who goes to professional conferences for the sole purpose of building their resume and promoting their personal brand.

They pass from person to person, handing out their business card, trying to weasel into conversions with prestigious figures. They operate on an autopilot “what can I get” mentality, spamming everyone who is deemed useful.

A thin veneer of self-importance masks their inner-fragility, but no one is fooled. Like Radiohead said in Paranoid Android , Ambition makes you look pretty ugly.

As a lecturer in sociology at Eastern Michigan University, I have seen this resume-focused culture among students who feel crushed by the pressure to constantly perform to the point where anything lower than an A seems like a failing grade.

Many students have come to view their education as an obstacle to overcome so they can look impressive on paper in order to attain high paying jobs. But this is not necessarily their fault. The impersonal bureaucratized education system uses GPAs and standardized tests to sort through a large number of applicants.

This system produces grade-obsession, overshadowing self-cultivation, and character development. Simply memorizing a set of factual bullet-points for the exam has become the main goal for many students. This type of ambition is neither in the best interest of students or the broader society.

The real world does not want someone who simply knows a lot of facts; we have Google for that. The real world wants people who understand how to use  knowledge to solve problems.

In order to solve the world’s problems, we need people who are self-aware, emotionally intelligent, and have a disciplined sense of commitment to serving a larger cause.

These are the characteristics associated with the eulogy virtues. These are the characteristics that will save us from ugliness.

Aristotle gave us a version of the good life that is not only sustainable, but it also promotes true happiness.

His first principle is that all things aim at “the good”. Like archers directing an arrow toward a target, “the good” is the ultimate target of our actions. The problem is that this ultimate aim is often interrupted.

As Jean Vanier states in Made for Happiness: Discovering the Meaning of Life with Aristotle :

Today, as always, many people are not interested in the target, that is to say, the ultimate end of their actions. They are prompted by what everyone wants — as if their family, society, and the media were determining their development. Of course they want success, pleasure, recognition, but without really knowing why. They are caught up in short-term projects that prevent them from thinking about the purpose and meaning of human life.

Aristotle tells us that the key to redirecting our life toward “the good” is to use our reason to direct our passions and chaotic desires toward virtue. Jean Vanier gives the following metaphor of reason taking the reins of the passions:

Like runaway, riderless horses, they await direction. Man’s proper task is to take hold of the reins and guide them, to orient these desires, with all their fulminating energy, towards the sought-after end.

The problem is that this is far easier said than done.

How to Build a Better Version of Success

If you are addicted to the socially construed definition of success, it is not easy to simply suppress your deep emotional attachments to this way of life.

Our minds are driven by our emotions.

Contemporary moral psychologist, Jonathan Haidt, empirically demonstrates that David Hume’s passion-driven conception of human reason is more in line with reality.

Rather than a rider taking the reigns of a horse, Haidt says reason is more like a rider on an elephant.

Although reason can nudge us in a specific direction, the emotions, represented by the elephant, overwhelmingly drive our behavior. Since reason is not sovereign, this idea flips Aristotle’s method of virtuous self-development on his head, forcing us to train our emotions rather than our reason.

How does one go about training their emotions?

In the case of psychological disorders, emotion-focused cognitive-behavioral therapy or present-centered breathing techniques may be beneficial.

But beyond the case of psychological disorders, a morally virtuous character is not built from within . Rather, the virtuous character is built between the individual and society.

In The Happiness Hypothesis , Jonathan Haidt gives two possible methods of facilitating this type of interaction:

What is the meaning of life? The question is unanswerable in that form, but with a slight rephrasing we can answer it. Part of the answer is to tie yourself down, commit yourself to people and projects, and enter a state of “vital engagement” with them. The other part is to attain a state of “cross-level coherence” within yourself, and within your life. Religion is an evolved mechanism for satisfying these needs. We can find meaning and happiness without religion, but we must understand our evolved religious nature before we can find effective substitutes.

So to recap, the archer whose target is “the good life” is not merely distracted by emotions, but driven by them.

Training the emotional elephant can take the form of individual therapy, but must take the form of vital social engagement to build a virtuous character.

Developing this character is its own reward, producing happiness throughout the process. Therefore, happiness is not to be confused with”the good life”.

If “the good life” is the target, happiness is the vehicle by which one works toward it. Happiness is facilitated by social forces that promote moral commitment such as work and community life.

Johnathen Haidt also raises the important question of how a diverse society can promote a common morality:

Is virtue its own reward? Yes, but in the modern West we’ve lost the ability to grow most virtues in good soil, and we’ve reduced virtue to just being nice. Where did we go wrong, and how can we forge a common morality in a diverse society?

Fundamentally, man’s desire toward “the good life” is the desire to have a common purpose found in community.

Individualistic social contexts have a tendency to leave this desire unfulfilled. This results in the pursuit of status, encouraged by the success ideolog, as highlighted at the beginning of this post.

Luxurious lifestyles and status symbols can give us the thrill of temporary pleasure, but it is ultimately a bottomless pit, always demanding more.

True happiness comes from a life of virtue, nourished by a moral social context that provides purpose and direction, promoting our lives together.

For a deeper look at the meaning of purpose, you can check out my article, What Does it Mean to Have a Purpose .

How A Company is Redefining Success

“We asked ourselves what we wanted this company to stand for. We didn’t want to just sell shoes. I wasn’t even into shoes – but I was passionate about customer service.” Tony Hsieh

It is no secret that the key to Zappos’ success is its unique company culture. The turning point occurred when founder Tony Hsieh changed their guiding principle from profits to service.

In Delivering Happiness , Tony outlines his insights into company culture throughout his entrepreneurial career. Taking insights from the field of positive psychology and applying it to his organizational setting, Tony has been able to create a cult-like environment that inspires individuals through service.

Although the concept of service has its roots in the religious-life of ritual, the sociologist Émile Durkheim argued that occupational groups would take over this function in the modern era. But as we have seen in the development of corporate America, this is often not the case.

Decidedly breaking from the culture of greed as a motivator, Zappos has created a cult of service. Inspiring rather than motivating has been Tony’s goal.

But how does service inspire individuals, making them happier? The answer is the meaning and sense of purpose that comes with service to a cause outside of ourselves.

At Zappos, achieving happiness comes from delivering happiness. The culture of service Tony has been able to achieve inspires employees by giving them a sense of purpose outside themselves. This is supported throughout the workplace structure at Zappos.

A prime example of how Zappos is redefining success is the lack of time-restrictions on customer service phone calls and a large amount of staff allotted to this position. This allows employees to focus on serving the customer, rather than call-time efficiency. Tony actually reported that their record call-time was seven and a half hours with a customer!

The foundation of Zappos’ company culture centers on its core values . These are the guiding principals that support a positive environment where individuals gain a sense of comradery rather than a sense of competition.

Unlike most organizations, their core values are actually relevant, meaningful, and drawn upon to determine who is hired and fired. This means that individuals who are highly qualified will not be hired or retained if they are not in line with the core values.

Instead of assuming individuals are motivated by an endless pursuit of wealth, Zappos focuses its resources on building a workplace that fosters positive relations and provides a structure that allows employees to serve.

Check out the Zappos Family Culture Book , for first-hand accounts of the powerful workplace culture at Zappos.

True success means staying true to a deeper sense of purpose, despite deviating from a superficial social norm.

It means finding joy in suffering. It means having the courage to peruse one’s own journey when confronted by the fear of uncertainty.

In a world characterized by rapidly growing uncertainty, we can try to seek solace in the empty promise of conventional success, or we can choose our own path.

Although it is our own path, we need to be aware of how this path connects us to a cause or community beyond ourselves.

Living in aliment with our core values allows us to genuinely connect with others rather than trying to gain a false sense of acceptance through status.

Hopefully, this article has helped clarify the true meaning of success.

If you are interested in learning more about this topic, you can check out my articles on Identity, Purpose, and Belonging .

Fascinated by ideas? Check out my podcast:

Struggling with an addiction.

If you’re struggling with an addiction, it can be difficult to stop. Gaining short-term relief, at a long-term cost, you may start to wonder if it’s even worth it anymore. If you’re looking to make some changes, feel free to reach out. I offer individual addiction counselling to clients in the US and Canada. If you’re interested in learning more, you can send me a message here .

Other Mental Health Resources

If you are struggling with other mental health issues or are  looking for a specialist near you, use the Psychology Today therapist directory  here to find a practitioner who specializes in your area of concern.

If you require a lower-cost option, you can check out BetterHelp.com . It is one of the most flexible forms of online counseling.  Their main benefit is lower costs, high accessibility through their mobile app, and the ability to switch counselors quickly and easily, until you find the right fit.

*As an affiliate partner with Better Help, I receive a referral fee if you purchase products or services through the links provided.

As always, it is important to be critical when seeking help, since the quality of counselors are not consistent. If you are not feeling supported, it may be helpful to seek out another practitioner. I wrote an article on things to consider here .

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38 Comments

By giving up our values and giving in, to the demands of what the society want us to be, we would lose sight of who we are, and we’d have to spend a lot more time, trying to establish who we are back, and so, I believe, it would be more important, to figure ourselves out first, before we try and become whichever roles the society expects us to take up, I believe, that the “self” is more important in this case.

I so agree with this article on the dangers of a consumerist society and the pursuit of conventional success. I think success is doing what you love and getting paid for it, or even not getting paid for it but somehow creating the space to do what you love. Consumerism is like a disease that makes people perpetually dissatisfied with what they have, always wanting something new, seeking change. Whereas the essence of happiness is being content with what you do have. http://bit.ly/1ER5cLY

You have the right values on what success means to you. and, i agree with you, that the essence of happiness is being content with what you have, but, we’re all, trapped by the pursuit of more materials, that we lose sight of what is really imporant, our inner cores!

True success can be achieved through ‘Interdependence’ according to Stephen Covey as I read the book ‘The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People’. Society is just one aspect of the many things that defines our so-called ‘Success’. When we try to be principle-oriented people, we know that we’re successful and effective at the same time.

The other morning I was flying back to Bombay. Once the descent starts to Bombay you can see mountains, the ocean and the top of civilization among the previous two. Two thoughts struck me while I sat thinking in pure sunlight looking at the minuscule existence of mankind. The second thought was – here I am miles away from everything I know – lives, thoughts, norms, clothes, food, friends, stress, depression, happiness, how does any of it matter, one just needs to distance oneself from everything one knows to see the in-consequence of trivialities. And because nothing matters, everything can, you can choose your bigger picture.

Excellent blog. Thank you.

Love it! All of it! Such great insight. I feel this every day working in Corporate America and feel like no one else sees or feels the same things when I try to talk about it. Thanks for your words.

Although, I do agree with your article that success and the norm of society can be draining, what if individuals in society see their personal view of success as living off of those who do work hard in order to enjoy their life? Because of the depravity of man, there has always been law to convict the heart of evil and without a source of truth to follow,not all men and women will be as thoughtful and concerned with others, in their pursuit, as some are. So, universally we need the structure of society to support the infrastructure that would fall apart without it. Marx societies are full of hurting individuals who wish they had opportunity. I can only speak for Christianity, but you are right, hypocrisy does infilter many places of worship. We do have to remember though that the imperfect state of humanity never goes away under the authority of God. People are still people and will act as humans do…imperfect. Christians are changed by grace, not good works, but as a Christian the law of God is now written the heart and so instead of pursuing righteousness for the sake of being right, christians who truly love Jesus do it out of a love for Him and seek to become like Him. It’s a process of sanctification until the end of life. We don’t get it right all the time, and we are thankful for the grace of God each and every day. The truth that Christianity teaches is what sets us apart as a nation, it’s what our laws used to be based on, and it’s what makes us value the freedom that you speak of, but as a Christian, with truth in the heart, we know that with freedom comes responsibity. Without truth we are left with no boundaries. Even those who haven’t accepted the truth of Christ live by it in many places in the world because it is the difference between good and evil and we are created to recognize it. Until a person finds acceptance and love through a relationship with his creator, he will search and go his or her own way. Sometimes that’s trying to do good for others and sometimes it’s being selfish. How do we even define what is good and what is selfish without truth.? That’s why a communist society that Marx speaks of has never worked. Without God’s truth, mans heart of evil, defined by God’s truth, destroys everything he or she tries to create. I want you to know that I enjoy reading your articles so much. They make you think. Your intelligence is remarkable and it’s refreshing and unlike most of what I come in contact with as a blogger myself. Thank you!

Stephanie, I read your analysis as a result of skimming its length, and I must say I had not thought about the perspective you offered. You have a point in how do we as humans determine our pursuits in ways that do no infringe upon others’ pursuits, happiness, and serenity. Your argument made me think about Nietzche’s works and my understanding of his argument in that there is no truth. Right and wrong and morality and ethics exist on a sliding scale based upon each individual’s perspective, experiences, and many other factors unique to the person. I applaud you for sharing your thoughts to this enlightening article and causing me to think deeper on the subject.

“Consumer culture leads us away from the true and abiding connection to one’s life that comes with following our own path toward fulfillment.” ~ Excellent article! Thanks for sharing your insights. ~ In the face of America’s consumer culture of success, I have had to embrace humility in being viewed as a failure in order to follow my own path toward fulfillment.

Two thoughts on this great article: 1) So-called success can be the smallest amount of progress toward the smallest goal that has nothing to do with a tangible “thing,” i.e., treating one’s child more openly and kindlly ; 2) I love drawing the distinction between ‘success’ and ‘fulfillment.’ While the two are hopefully not mutually exclusive, if forced to choose I will take fulfillment any day, thank you very much.

Interestingly, I rarely ever comment on a post unless I feel passionate about the subject matter. In this case I wholeheartedly agree. Success bears emptiness if it is emptiness. Then by extension, success must hang on the deeper elements of the soul in order to be truly achieved.

Reblogged this on Lady Dyanna and commented: Excellent post.

Love this post! I have said many times that I’d rather be rich in time than rich in money. I guess that’s my deviation from the social norm. I don’t want to work 60 hours a week for big wealth. I’d rather have the time to actually LIVE my life.

There are nuggets of wisdom here Steve. Congrats on articulating those ideas so brilliantly. It does take courage to really think out of the box.

Definitely more accessible than Baudrillard, and not quite as bleak, but… realistic? I ask, because western ideals of “success” – according to Baudrillard, have been carefully constructed so that our closest references to the fulfillment you posit, will only point us toward another material symbol of that fulfillment until we buy in or die. Do you think that our perceptions of “success” are our own, or are they inherited from our “closest references” to the past (ancestors?) If our definition of “success” is, as I believe, inherited, the task of perceiving “true” fulfillment would be like listening to an echo of an echo of an echo of, yet another echo, of a secret, whispered in the ear of an ancestor that lived five hundred years ago, far far away from western shores. Would we even know what fulfillment is supposed to look or feel like- let alone, how to attain it? Maybe we’re all just thinking too hard, and should stop; and devote all of our remaining energy to saving enough money to take our families to Disneyland! Seriously…great article, I look forward to reading the next!

Interesting to read, thank you for sharing! Sometimes we have to point on the smaller things which are important for us.

Get older. You’ll feel better. You will have the success of having outlived most of the naysayers who didn’t travel when they were younger. I have always gone my own way, much to the chagrin of those who would manipulate me with conditional approval. However, I’m the only person I have to sleep with, and I sleep very well.

I think that when success is guided by the person’s true path it can be profound but when success is merely a blast of what society expects or wants us to do then it is cold, artificial and unrewarding. I believe that success should be the path to enlightenment.

Steve, you do such a wonderful job here of connecting lessons from the veteran’s struggle to re-assimilate with the broader problem of self-fulfilment. I hope that those that you serve read this and understand that they are still fighting a very important battle for us – the battle of being witness to our own disconnection.

“He who is developed far beyond the level possible to the bourgeois, he who knows the bliss of meditation no less than the gloomy joys of hatred and self-hatred, he who despises law, virtue and common sense, is nevertheless captive to the bourgeoisie and cannot escape it.” (Hesse) Kind of a pretentious one, but the Freeman quote reminded me of this book. How does one escape the world of the bourgeoisie? It feels like more than the “fear of uncertainty” to me- society won’t allow us to exist unless we pander to its rules & ideals. The more time we are devoting to mindless/unimportant work (that some people have to do in order to survive, of no choice of their own), the less time we have to think about things that would allow us to find meaning/choose our own paths. Even the stress and worry of going through college, working, & etc leaves me feeling like i am unable to devote my time to any of the things I think matter.

Powerful words to think about! well done.

‘The more you have, the more you want.’ -and so it continues- this self-fulfilling prophecy. Is this the way of the Western World? Is it a Western disease, or a global one? My husband AND mother were raised in Africa. Both of them are avid ‘non-consumers’ . My husband’s favourite saying is “Why do I need a new one when this one still works?”-Are we victims of Western Societal ideals? Informative post once again. Certainly provided food for thought, Cheers, Nicole

But isn’t the choice between what we want, what we need and what we get for free from society, the fun part of living. Sometimes we make do and sometimes we get to bask in the glory of our achievements! 😀

Quite an enjoyable and striking read. It is all too true. I appreciate the references you used, and now I am interested in reading Unspoken Abandonment, which I had never heard of until now!

Success is not related directly to others it is measure of how closely you live your life to your own core desire. Your self’s desire. For instance you felt passionately about your subject, researched it well and then out it out there. That was your success – the fact that we are applauding you is nether here or there. You are a success because you are true. Monetary terms and praise do not make success.

Agree completely with your comment. If we allow our ‘success’ to be dependent upon others validation, then it is no longer ours. Yes, it is important and satisfying to have ‘it’ be acknowledged, but it can also breed a sense of insecurity within us if it does not come from a place of ‘truth’ and authenticity.

Exactly – sometimes your audience claps early before you get to your punchline, thus throwing you off your real success.

Sorry sent it out there not out it out there,

Wow from the responses you hit a nerve with this topic of defining success! I love a couple of things here that ring true or with me The idea of working jobs in neat places with adequate pay to experience new or unknown undiscovered place . I would really enjoy that I love the reference to what is important as is seen thru the eyes of veterans Unspoken Abandonment This is a phrase I will use in the future bc I think it is relevant in more than one context In this context what could be more relevant than someone who has lost the ability to compete or fit in as one of the status quo. You are so right tangible things give pleasure but it is fleeting Sometimes I think I would like to not fit in and not care. The whole of this message resounds with me hugely!

No wonder the righteous master said: seek ye the kingdom of God and all other things will be added. Aside the spiritual benefit I think it create a sense of serenity of soul to really focus on things that matter to us and thus we could define what success means to us as a person.

Absolutely brilliant! Your analysis flows seamlessly, and I thank you for writing it wholeheartedly. There is much to take away and much to discuss. I will limit my comments to the following in that I thoroughly enjoyed your use of outside and diverse references such as the sociologist Durkheim, the author Tolstoy, and direct statements from veterans to relay a succinct message. I believe in that your sense of justice, protest, and compassion comes through in your writing. A change must occur in order to reach our fullest potential as individuals and members of society. I agree in that at the end of the day choice and free will are in every person’s hands. To choose meaning, purpose, and significance as championing notions on how to live a good life- a fulfilled life is where we must trail blaze.

Thank you for this wonderful comment! I’m glad you enjoyed this post.

Reblogged this on againstmodernconsciousness and commented: A must-read article and its accompanying comments section on the definition of success.

Steve, Your observations about consumerism and success are spot on. (I’ve written a book built on much the same premise.) But don’t paint with too broad a brush. As Stephanie said above, religions have been distorted to justify great evil in the name of God, but that does not discredit the institution of religion, which ultimately is the source of all meaningful definitions of morality, and which provides the structure that gives us the guidelines and the strength to live moral lives. The convergence of atheistic society with amoral self-indulgence is evident everywhere you look. BTW, “the more you have, the more you want” is from the Talmud.

I completely agree. I think you will like my post on religion and spirituality here: https://steveroseblog.wordpress.com/2016/01/25/spiritual-but-not-religious/

hey steve–i just wanted to thank you for following my lets-glow.com blog. i really like reading your posts–what classes do you teach at EMU?

Thank you! Glad you have been enjoying the posts. I currently teach Intro to Sociology and Sociology of Religion.

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The Real Meaning of Success

A lot of needless suffering is rooted in the misperceptions of success.

We are surrounded by a materialistic culture and get to experience first-hand the kind of “happiness” it brings when we obtain a specific title or object. You may even feel it from time to time, like buying the new iPhone or basking in the scent of a fresh new car. It’s not necessarily bad to have these things, but many times, the reasons  why  we crave these things are a bit misconstrued.

The truth, however, is that success is ephemeral in all areas of life. The smell of the new car will fade. The new phone will be replaced — sooner, rather than later — by a more advanced, sleeker, lighter, and better one. Someone younger, stronger, or smarter will eventually come and beat your record.

At a time where my self-defeating behavior was at its highest, my issue was that I chased after the wrong kind of success. Television and mass media would exemplify what the meaning of success was — the new car, the job title, a certain kind of body, etc. — and I would believe in it. This elicited a lot of frustration, resentment, and jealousy because it always felt like I was trying to catch up.

When I became aware of my behavior, I was certain that it was fruitless. If I continued to chase after these false objects of happiness and success, what I would ultimately be doing is running around in circles.

In my honest opinion, life is about moving forward, not ending up where you started.

How to Redefine The Meaning of Success

In order to lead the life that you desire, you must set your own goals and idea of success according to what you want — not what television or your parents want. This is all about you, your life, and idea of success.

1. Ask yourself: What is success?

If I were to define what success is, I would start small. But how do you define it without selling yourself short? As a writer, a feeling of success is being able to draft up something everyday, no matter what day it is. I can write 1000 words of just terrible nonsense, but still be satisfied that I did what I’m supposed to do. To beat myself up because I didn’t write a brilliant post is a false sense of success based on expectations that are not my own.

Plus, it’s not even realistic.

What is success to you? Is it getting up in the mornings and getting to the gym? Is it the To-Do list that you set out for yourself the day before? The purpose of defining your own success  is to start living a life based on your own expectations and terms . The actions that bring you joy, a sense of accomplishment, service, and progress are where you should be investing your energy.

2. How do I achieve it?

Chances are, if it makes you happy and requires you to use your skills and effort, then you probably should be doing it everyday. The new phone or car — those are just temporary rewards; they won’t last.

The moment you define what the meaning of success is to you, the only way to achieve it is to take the steps forward in accomplishing your goals or objectives. The moment you stop trying to constantly please others and meet their expectations, only then can you find joy in the things you are already doing — or will start doing.

Really sit down — even write it out if you have to — and define what success is to you. You can create both short-term and long-term goals. My short-term goals consists of writing daily, accomplishing my tasks, and being of service to others. My long-term goals would be finishing my book, building my readership on my blog, and seeing other’s achieve their goals overtime.

Work towards daily success, not only the success that comes at the end of the journey. Do this everyday, and your actions will bring you closer to your ultimate goals.

Don’t Wait

To free yourself from the limitations of what other’s perceive as success is a tremendous opportunity to define life on your own terms. You learn to stop chasing things that simply don’t matter — but at one point you thought they did — and instead, you start to focus on the things that help you differentiate progress versus procrastination.

The fruitless emotions of anger, jealousy, and resentment should play no part in the attainment of your endeavors and the ability to succeed; those are just distractions.

The more you strive to be better than yesterday, the more success you will feel because progress, at times, can be felt. You can feel it in your body when progressing and working hard towards completing a project. You can see it when you reflect back on when you first started, and the leaps that you took to get to where you are today.

Once you remove the veil of what success really means to you, only then can you start achieving it daily and on your own expectations.

Don’t wait to start living like this. You can start today. As a matter of fact,  you should start today , because continuously living everyday with expectations that are not of your own is a day that is not truly yours.

How do you define your success? What do you do to achieve it? Share your insights below.

Featured photo credit:  Real Meaning of Success,  Young businessman on a ladder  via Shutterstock

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What Is Success?

A personal perspective: success involves making an attempt and learning..

Posted January 30, 2022 | Reviewed by Abigail Fagan

When I was in seventh grade, I was given an assignment in school to write a paper about success. My title was “Success is Simply Happiness .” When I told that to my father at the dinner table on the night before the paper was due, he put down his fork, looked directly at me, and said, “All of my buddies in World War II did not die happy. Are you telling me they were not successful?” In my mind, I thought about changing the title to “Just Don’t Die,” but instead I sat in silence with the rest of my siblings, knowing this moment definitely was not happy, and thus my title, nor my paper, were a success.

I think possibly what I learned from that dinner is that success does not equal happiness, nor does happiness mean success.

Ever since then, the question about the definition of success has been in my mind. While I was a reporter for the student paper in college, I wrote an article about “What is Success?” I interviewed several students and most of them had my early childhood definition: Happiness. So I would ask them, “Are you happy when you’re studying?” “Are you happy when negative circumstances happen that eventually bring happiness?” The unanimous answer was, “Hmmm.”

Our mayor at the time in Cincinnati was Jerry Springer. He was also our commencement speaker. I had an interview scheduled with him on the day of Homecoming and I was excited to ask him how he defined success. When we got together, he asked if we could come back and do the interview later because he had an urgent meeting to attend. I am ashamed to say I went back to the fraternity, got drunk and missed our interview. C’mon. It was homecoming! Needless to say, it was not a successful day.

So what is success? That is one of the most beautiful explorations that each individual can make. The dictionary defines it as, “the accomplishment of an aim or purpose.” Thus, each person must recognize his/her own goal and purpose. However, I believe that the journey is the destination. The questions are the journey. Goals change. They might be achieved, discarded, or abruptly interrupted. The blessing is that new goals are always waiting. So is the dictionary wrong in saying that success is an accomplishment?

Success for me is learning, not necessarily achieving, but making an attempt and learning. Success is continuing the journey. It will only be achieved when we die. Perhaps success is no regrets, and will be determined on our death beds.

So ironically, my thought about changing the title of my seventh-grade paper to “Just Don’t Die,” should have been, “Just Wait Till You Die.” Or possibly, the title should have been, “Keep Your Fork.”

Knocking the “F” out of Failure

Success blooms from failures along the journey.

“Learn to fail, or fail to learn.” —Thomas Edison

There is such a huge difference between failing and being a failure. Ironically, failing makes you less of a failure. You can only grow from failing. If you’re not willing to fail, you cannot innovate and make change. If you don’t step through the uncertainty of making an attempt, you will never achieve success.

Failure and success are exactly the same direction.

That is why the journey is the reward, and success is taking the journey, not the end result.

Remember that each step is progress. Each step, no matter how small, gets easier than the last. Soon they will become giant strides. Each time we adapt to change, it allows us to adapt sooner and more productively the next time. Even when mistakes happen along the road, those mistakes come from the courage of taking a step. Every time you take that one small step, you are stepping further away from the fear . Take pride in those steps! As you move past the fear, you begin to appreciate and feel accomplishment and joy. The answer is not in finding your goal, but learning to enjoy the search. Enjoy the search! How can you make it fun?

One of my all-time favorite expressions is:

“Life is not about the door that will open or the door that closed. It is about enjoying the hell in the hallway.”

In taking the next small step, always remember that it might be the wrong step. That’s ok. The important part of any step is the insight that follows. Not the result, but the lesson. In school, they call learning “lessons.” Learning is the lesson. Life is about learning.

Eventually, with work and progress, our fears and our darkness will become what we are most proud of. Our scars are symbols of courage and growth. They represent our passion.

Bill Kavanagh is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist, currently living in Palm Springs, California, specializing in addiction, major illness, LGBTQ, and anyone struggling to find meaning and purpose.

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Personal Definition of Success Essay

• To find inspiration for your paper and overcome writer’s block
• As a source of information (ensure proper referencing)
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Success is a single monosyllabic word that carries a different meaning to every person; this is the reason of having no absolute overall definition of it. In Compact Oxford Dictionary (2008), success is to accomplish, something wished, planned for, and attempted to achieve through hard work. The origin of the word success is Latin successus that means to come close after, it relates to the extent of achievement rather than to the volume of work done (Oxford Compact English Dictionary, 2008). To define success, one has to look first at the standards, keys, and models of success.

Success can be an achievement, a moment, or fruition, in any instance, success incorporates both perceptions and experiences; one of the major problems in defining success is that experiences and perceptions felt internally. On the other hand, evaluation of success is often by someone else (external), in other words there are objective and subjective standards for success. Further, the meaning of success differs with different community cultures, in industrial well-developed communities, three outcomes that decide what success is. These are influence, wealth, and prominence. An absolute definition of success will ignore people paving the way for success; an example is a schoolmaster who works hard to provide the suitable learning and teaching environment. Another is a volunteer at a local hospital providing support services to the elderly patients or chronically ill children, is that person successful or the hospital administration or doctors. This is another reason of having one’s own definition of success (Herb and Sweeny, Pp.23-31).

Success can be the achievement of autonomy that is one’s freedom to take decisions based only on his interest. For others, success is to achieve emotional satisfaction and constancy in the course of life, for others still it is achieving glory as for the Olympic athletes. What model an individual looks at as a successful one depends on one’ objectives in life to decide which model to look at (Herb and Sweeny, Pp. 23-31).

The keys to achieve success are many; however the most important one is to love what one is doing, that is simply to understand that success is not the gate to happiness, but happiness is the a key to success. Second, and of equal importance is to define one’s objectives in this stage of life, that is what does one want? In addition, defining one’s objective in life and the steps or the road to go through that is when does one want it? Of equal importance is to define how to achieve these objectives that is how does one want his image to be? Concentration on one’s goals (always keep focused), and balancing the various values and principals in life , moral, spiritual, physical, and psychological are two important pillars in considering personal success (McNamara, Pp.102-103).

The way Radun in 2007, defines success is convincing. Success is an aim in itself; rather it is a long road to pass through, it is not an end but a continuous expedition. To include all success view and experiences, a developed definition of success on three pillars, first is what can be achieved? Second, is a clear plan for the future. Third, is to enjoy the journey to achieve these objectives. In this sense, a person is successful, if that person likes what he does, has gratifying relationships, and has an achievable plan for the future.

As life issues are connected, one should always keep a broad vision of life to be able to assess issues in life and move towards them in an inclusive way.

Works Cited

• Herb, Greenberg, and Sweeney, Patrick, et al. Succeed On Your Own Terms. New York: McGraw-hill, 2006.
• McNamara, Carter. Field Guide to Consulting and Organizational Development: A Collaborative and Systems Approach to Performance, Change and Learning. Minneapolis: Authenticity Consulting, LLC, 2006.
• Rauden, Lori. “Success Coaching: A New Definition of Success.” The Online Self Improvement Encyclopedia. 2007.
• Soanes, Catherine, and Hawker, Sara (Editors), et al. Compact Oxford English Dictionary Of Current English, 3rd Edition. London: Oxford University Press, 2008.
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IvyPanda. (2021, October 15). Personal Definition of Success. https://ivypanda.com/essays/personal-definition-of-success/

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Finding Success Starts with Finding Your Purpose

• John Coleman

It’s never too early — or too late — to ask the big questions.

Many people work their whole lives to achieve material success only to find their happiness and sense of purpose wanting when that success comes. They often spend their later years looking for purpose in their lives in order to feel a sense of meaning. Searching for meaning late in your life is a missed opportunity. Success without significance — purpose, service, and meaningful relationships — is not really success at all. It’s important to properly reflect on how you can live a life imbued intensely not just with the superficial trappings of “success” but with deep purpose and joy in all we do — starting now. Ask yourself:  What is the core purpose of my work and the ways in which it makes the world better? Who are the key relationships in my life, and how can I deepen them? What more can I do at work, at home, and in my community to serve others? How am I becoming better each day?

In 1995, Bob Buford wrote the bestselling book Halftime , which popularized the concept of “moving from success to significance” in the second half of life. Buford realized that many businesspeople work their whole lives to achieve material success only to find their happiness and sense of purpose wanting when that success comes. And he rightly encouraged those people to seek out meaning and impact in their later years.

• JC John Coleman is the author of the HBR Guide to Crafting Your Purpose . Subscribe to his free newsletter, On Purpose , or contact him at johnwilliamcoleman.com . johnwcoleman

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✍️Essay on Success in 100,150 and 200 Words: The Power of Positive Mindset

• Updated on  
• Oct 26, 2023

The concept of success is very simple; if you invest your time wisely and work hard, you will achieve success in no time. But success is not as simple as it sounds; what might sound like success to one might not be the same for another person. It embodies the realization of one’s goals, aspirations, and desires, often accompanied by a sense of accomplishment and fulfilment.

Success is manifested in different aspects, such as career achievements, personal growth, or even the pursuit of happiness. It is a journey filled with determination, perseverance, and often a willingness to learn from both triumphs and setbacks. Ultimately, success is a subjective pursuit that reflects the unique path and definition of achievement for each person.

Table of Contents

• 1 What Makes a Person Successful?
• 2 Essay on Success in 100 Words
• 3 Essay on Success in 150 Words
• 4 Essay on Success in 200 Words

What Makes a Person Successful?

Being successful is very subjective and can vary from person to person. Therefore, here are some common factors which contribute to the success of a person.

• Hard Work and Persistence: Success requires effort and dedication and one has the ability to face challenges.
• Setting Clear Goals: It is very important for one to have specific and attainable goals which will provide direction and motivation. 
• Networking: The person should have the capability to build relations and at the same time be open to opportunities which strike. 
• Time Management: Managing time effectively and priorities is essential for productivity and progress. 
• Self-Discipline: One should be very focused and maintain self-control which will help them achieve long-term goals. 
• Management of Finances: Having a basic understanding of finances and managing them wisely is also very important for attaining financial success. 

Also Read: Essay on Water Conservation

Essay on Success in 100 Words

Success is the culmination of dedication, hard work, and determination. It is not merely the achievement of material wealth, but the fulfilment of one’s goals and aspirations. Success varies from person to person; for some, it’s a thriving career, while for others, it could be having a harmonious family life. 

To attain success, individuals must set clear objectives, persevere through challenges, and learn from failures. Success often involves learning, adapting, and embracing change. It’s the result of resilience and the willingness to keep pushing forward. Ultimately, success is a personal journey, and its definition is unique to each individual.

Essay on Success in 150 Words

Everybody wants to be successful in life, but are they willing to put in all their efforts? Success is not solely measured by wealth or fame but by achieving one’s goals and finding fulfilment. True success is often the result of determination, hard work, and resilience. Setting clear, achievable objectives and being persistent through challenges are crucial components.

Education is a common path to success, providing knowledge and skills that open doors to opportunities. Embracing failure as a stepping stone, learning from mistakes, and adapting to change are essential to achieving success. However, it’s important to recognize that success is subjective and can encompass a broader spectrum of achievements beyond material possessions.

Personal growth, happiness, and a sense of purpose are all part of success. Balancing personal and professional life is key to sustaining it. Ultimately, success is a journey, not a destination, and it’s about realizing your full potential and making a meaningful contribution to the world.

Also Read: Essay on Nature: In 100 Words, 200 Words, 300 Words

Essay on Success in 200 Words

Success is a multifaceted concept, often defined by achieving one’s goals and aspirations. It is a subjective and deeply personal notion, as what constitutes success varies from person to person. However, a common thread in success is the continuous pursuit of one’s ambitions, combined with determination and hard work.

Success is not solely measured by material wealth, but rather by the fulfilment and satisfaction that comes from reaching one’s objectives. It is the result of setting clear goals, developing a plan, and facing all the challenges. The road to success is rarely smooth; it is often marked by setbacks and failures. These obstacles are crucial for personal growth, teaching valuable lessons that contribute to success in the long run.

Moreover, success is not an endpoint; it is a continuous journey. It requires adaptability and the willingness to learn and evolve. Success can be found in various aspects of life, from career achievements to personal relationships and self-fulfilment. It is the balance and harmony between these different facets that lead to a truly successful and meaningful life.

In conclusion, success is a complex and individualized concept, rooted in determination, hard work, resilience, and personal growth. It is not defined solely by external markers but by the fulfilment and happiness, one derives from their accomplishments and the journey to achieve them.

Related Articles

Writing an essay on success requires you to describe this multifaceted concept. Success is achieved when one’s goal and objective is attained. Those who are successful, have fulfilled their highest ambitions in life and work, or are actively striving towards doing so. 

Happiness does not follow success. Contrary to popular belief, living a life that makes you happy can help you achieve your goals and be content. 

You gain from success because it gives you the things you want or need. Setting and achieving attainable goals results in a feeling of well-being. 

For more information on such interesting topics, visit our essay-writing page and follow Leverage Edu ! 

Malvika Chawla

Malvika is a content writer cum news freak who comes with a strong background in Journalism and has worked with renowned news websites such as News 9 and The Financial Express to name a few. When not writing, she can be found bringing life to the canvasses by painting on them.

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Essay on Success

List of essays on success in english, short essay on success – essay 1 (100 words), essay on success: definition and how to achieve success – essay 2 (250 words), essay on success: parameters, qualities for achieving success and conclusion – essay 3 (300 words), essay on success: what is real success – essay 4 (500 words), essay on success: success and hard work – essay 5 (500 words), essay on success: education is the road to success – essay 6 (650 words), long essay on success – essay 7 (1000 words), essay on success: intro, success in life and success for students  – essay 8 (2500 words).

The students should be able to distinguish between true success and success of ill deeds. The short essays for students shall enlighten them with the true meaning of success. The essays written in simple language are very informative and shall prove to be beneficial for students of all classes.

Success is much more than riches, power or fame. Success is simply the feeling of satisfaction and happiness one gets from leading a particular way of life or carrying out a particular activity. Success in any field or aspect of life can only be achieved through serious hard work and a little bit of opportunity. One of the most important recipes of success is determination and it might as well be the most important secret of success. To become successful, it is necessary to never give up until the aim of happiness and satisfaction in life is fully met. The happiness and satisfaction can be found in very different things in different people.

‘Success’ is a very powerful word. Many of us run behind it; most of us want to conquer it. So, what is success all about? Does this mean acquiring money or fame? Success means different things to different people.

Definition of Success

The Oxford dictionary defines success as “ The accomplishment of an aim or purpose ”.

This is the definition of success in theory, but in reality it differs according to people’s interests and goals.

It is very important for every individual to define their own concept of success rather than following someone else’s footsteps. We must analyze what makes us happy, what gives us contentment, and what motivates us . No one can list out our needs better than us.

True success means understanding our dreams and working joyfully to make those dreams come true.

How to Achieve Success

Many great people have suggested various ways to achieve success. But the real secret ingredient to nail success is to believe that we are already successful . With this strong affirmative thought, success can be easily achieved if we follow these three success factors:-

• We should follow our passion because that is where our heart and soul is. When we follow our passion there is no need for us to put any extra effort.
• The path to success is always challenging. We should build confidence to face any challenging situations.
• The third and most important success factor is discipline . When we work in a disciplined manner, things will automatically fall in place.

If we stick to these three factors, nothing can stop us from tasting success. Success is a journey which continues even after the goal is achieved.

Success is perhaps the most desired feeling that all of us want to experience in the pursuit of our goals and also in day to day life. Apparently, every individual has his or her own definition of success.

Parameters of Success

None can deny that the world blindly respects and trusts wealthy people. Money is the prime dynamic force that drives this world. The sooner we acknowledge and appreciate this fact the better. Academic success is a prime concern for all in the initial part of life, especially in the school days. For those who continue perusing studies, academic success is the epitome of everything. It is mostly observed that success in personal life becomes a tough task for those who have all the riches. Here is where the common people feel successful to have a happy personal life.

Qualities for Achieving Success

One should not regret their decisions taken in the past and must refrain dwelling in the past. We must give deep thought before taking any decisions and uttering words from the mouth. For making a successful decision one must ask questions to oneself like: What Do I Need To Do? What Will Be The Outcome? Will It Be Worth Doing? One must keep the emotions for success and failures intact and should not showcase it to others. Successful people never wait for applause or acknowledgement of their work as they eventually get it. To become successful one must keep friends close and enemies closer. A successful person never demeans the weak and never underestimates anyone.

To become successful one has to understand what is important in that instant, recognize and work on the weaknesses, take criticism and hold on to the strengths. From a broader perspective Success defines the contentment, peace of mind and sheer happiness that is achieved. One should remember that only perseverance can lead the path to success.

Introduction

Real success is something we should all strive to attain. Real success can simply be said to be achieving a higher position or very high position in our chosen field or area; it can be politics or business or even education. In the world we live in today, we have equated success to riches, prosperity, fortunes, cars, houses and so many mundane things. We believe that once a person has enough money to be able to afford what he or she wants, the person is successful. This is a total and complete misconception that will be discussed here.

Money isn’t a measure of success?

While it is important to note that having money is a part of being successful and you can classify as rich person as being successful, money is not all that success is about and we have a lot of people around us that are seemingly rich but still count themselves as not successful. In fact, sometimes we see wealthy people and conclude that they aren’t successful. If this is true then we can safely conclude that success is deeper that money or other superficial and physical things can we might acquire or own. Money is very important to success in life but it is not a necessity and neither is it the only key to success in life.

What is real success?

Real success is way beyond the physical things we can see, real success is all about the feeling of satisfaction we get when we accomplish a task or do something, it is the happiness we get just by remembering what we have achieved and how we did it, real success has to do with a lot of positive feelings about ourselves and pride in what we have been able to do. As we can see, real success can only be achieved within one’s self and that is why a lot of people who we think are successful still believe they aren’t just because they aren’t happy with what they are doing or they feel they can get so much more out of life. From this, we can see that it is very important to attain true success in life.

How one can attain real success

For one to be successful, the first and most important thing one needs to do is to set goals and objectives. Only through the setting of goals can one really have something to pursue and claim success when we got those things or meet the set goals and target. A very important ingredient in achieving real success is determination. If one is going to get real success, one has to be determined to never give up no matter what the situation might be. Another very important ingredient is hard work as we can’t expect to be successful if we don’t work hard and do all it takes to meet all of our set goals. It is important that we get all the skills that are required for us to be successful in our chosen field.

The yardstick of success varies from people to people. The success story of an individual begins from the moment of his/her birth. A human child begins the winning streak by challenging every obstacle from the moment of conception to delivery. So no human is ever a failure, and hence confidently we can say that the very existence of every human in this word bear an element of success.

At the primary level, success lies within the parameters of cracking competitive exams and identifying one’s aptitude as to which profession the individual can flourish. On broader terms, a successful life is indeed a happy life reflecting upon how far one has reached. Success is not just related to material success.

How to become successful in life?

Nobody has ever become successful within a split of a moment. It is not an arduous task either. Strong determination coupled with hard work is the key to success. The first step to any attempt is to set the goal. There can be short-term goals, and long-term goals and both play a significant role on your road to success. Once the target set, then you have to do strategic planning. It is advisable to set a time frame as well. It will enable you to evaluate yourself on a regular basis. Fixing a time frame can also check into our procrastinating nature.

The next most important factor to become successful in life is hard work. It is the key to success. The adage rightly says that ‘no pain, no gain.’ You need to keep in mind that nobody else is going to do what we ought to do. If we put little effort and saw the seeds of hard work and perseverance, then we are sure to reap success and bounty. If you have strong willpower and the fire to ignite your dreams, then nothing can pull you back.

Stay focused on your objectives rather than hoping:

You can inspire yourself by being a self-motivator and critic. It opens room for self-improvement and appreciation. As it is said that ‘well begun is half done,’ do not hesitate to sparkle a start. Once we get a push, the rest will fall right in place. Even if we stumble down a couple of times, do not let go of our dreams. Failures are part and parcel of any successful entity. Mistakes are quite common and what needs to do is that we acknowledge them, and bear them in our mind. It ensures that we learn from the mistakes and in turn do not repeat them.

Nobody has ever been successful overnight. Patience is yet another golden rule. Just convince your mind that you are strong enough to be successful, though not today, at least some day. Never be disappointed if you lose. Trust in yourself and believe that you will reach there and you deserve to reach there. Your strength and weakness define the person you are, and the realization of it is rather important. Selfless dedication and hard work will definitely get you there.

Once you achieve your goals, you can be a strong inspiration to others. There is a warrior in you and never shut it down. You are capable of climbing higher and boom into a fantastic personality. Whatsoever, live a humble life, spread positivity and bear the torch to others’ road to success.

Saying education is the road to success is just another way of saying education is very important for all of us in life, without education there would not be a lot of progression in both our individual and collective lives as human. It is very important that we get education in order to get success in life. Most times, people generally limit education to the four walls of a classroom or a school.

Education has roots in every area of our existence; education can be said to begin from the home, parents and family members educate and train the children on good characters that they should imbibe and teach them to remove some habits and characters. All of these good characters imbibed by the child through education at home can help the child become very successful in future.

We all know that without good characters and morals, it is extremely hard to become successful or make it in life as people would not want to be associated with such person. We are also educated on good communication and interpersonal skills that are very necessary for us to make it and become successful in life.

Importance of education to success

We need to know the true value and worth of education. Education helps to facilitate our skill, knowledge and learning; it gives us a different view of the world and refines our personality, helping us to build very positive attitudes. Education is a totally essential tool in ensuring a bright future.

Education can serve as a tool in achieving anything and everything good about life. When we get a high level and degree of education, we earn respect and recognition from our family and the society at large.

Education can go a very long way in changing our thoughts and level of reasoning; it broadens our worldview and provides us with the opportunity to get knowledge and technical skills that are highly needed in life. We can improve our knowledge level and skill by watching educational documentaries and programmes on the TV, reading the news and keeping up to date with all of the happenings all over the world, reading a lot of books that can educate us. Education can go a long way to make us into more rational and civilised people. Education guarantees our place among people in the society and can help us achieve all of our dreams and aspirations in life.

Education and success

Success is the goal of all of us and it is our mission. Life can sometimes be full of different opportunities and challenges. Success can only be attained if we have all of the required and needed tools.

The most important tool for success is education because without education, we wouldn’t be able to have a wide view of the world and be able to innovate and develop. A lot of youths and children today cite the examples of the successful people that didn’t graduate from school and still went ahead to be successful in life. Mark Zuckerberg, the founder of Facebook famously did not graduate from Harvard university but still went ahead to become very successful. The truth is even though Mark didn’t graduate, he was well educated and wouldn’t have been able to start Facebook if he had no knowledge of coding and wasn’t enrolled in Harvard at all. From him, we can learn that education isn’t limited and can basically be any way of widening our knowledge and improving ourselves. We should never confuse education with getting a diploma or a degree. Only education in or out of school can make us be successful in life and give us the true career we want.

Without education, life would be totally meaningless without education. The only path to true success in life is education, every one that has been, is and would be successful in life needs education to do that.

The modern world has a way of doing things, that is, modern man has his own particular view on how things should look. That view is completely different from the perspectives upheld by those who came before us, so to say. Like the ancient Greeks were obsessed with performing heroic deeds, or medieval European Christians with martyrdom and upholding saintly principles, we can argue that modern man has an obsession with success. Or more precisely, one aspect of that new worldview is to compare people between each other through the notion of success.

In a way, the beginning of the 21 st century is preoccupied with the concept of success more than ever before, both individual and collective. That fact can is seen in many aspects of our daily lives, people are not just oppressed with celebrities and successful people they want to live that lifestyle or achieve some sort of greatness. Looking at the current state of things one is encouraged to analyze the situation further and to find the reason behind these phenomena, or at least to offer a new perspective on worldwide trend.

What Makes a Person Successful?

There are many ways a person can be successful. Most people will think of celebrities, politicians, artists, entrepreneurs, etc. They will think of someone who is known the world over because of the thing they do, the thing they are good at. That’s all fine, but there are successful people who do not like to be celebrities and there are, most definitely, celebrities who cannot count as successful people.

What then makes a successful person? Is it how they do things? Is it what they get in return? Is it in the number of things they can amass in their life? Most of those things can count as some part of our overall image of such a person. But, how can we define it? What is it actually?

What I like is simple answers, they are usually correct and the most practical at the same time. Even though not all answers can be simple, this one is. When you look up the word success in any dictionary you will find that it is considered an accomplishment of an aim or a purpose.

Surely people were able to accomplish an aim or a pulpous in their lifetimes, even several, before the 21 st century. Why is it that this noun has such relevance for the classification of people in this age?

History of Success

If we take a look at history, as I mentioned before, we can see that every age has a different occupation. When we talk about the ancient Egyptians, we do not talk about single individuals who made this country so great we talk about the collective in general. But also, we do not know the names of the people who actually accomplished the construction of the pyramid we remember the person who ordered it and did nothing to build it.

Sometimes when I think about all the great artists whose names I do not know, that built humanity in the name of kings, it seems as if it was forbidden for individuals to be famous if they were not born into some sort of noble family.

That drastically changed with the return of democracy to Europe and the liberation from the old-world view that separated people into casts, genders, and races. The new perspective born from revolutions gave every man the right to control their destiny and therefore the right to become successful, to achieve one’s dreams and ideals. Celebrating success can be seen as a collective celebration of the boundless human potential to do incredible things. Is it always so shiny? Or is there a dark side to the story?

Can Success Harm us?

We all know that being successful has its price and the people on the top can often be alone, because of the many sacrifices they had to make to get there. There are also countless examples of people who have achieved success professionally but their health and social lives fail because they cannot handle the strain that comes with maintaining that image of perfection that is expected of them.

Then there is also the psychological pressure any person can experience when they become obsessed with succeeding in the things they do. This emotion can cause such discomfort for people that they can freeze in key moments when they should be at the top of their game. Not to mention the depression some people experience when they come in contact with the images of people that exist on social media. There is a lot in being successful that we put under the carpet, or we just consider it as part of the game, something that we should bear. It does not have to be that way.

Sharing Success

People are made to be in a group and therefore everything they do they should do for each other; however, this fact of human existence has also been a breeding ground for nationalism and other group-oriented ideologies that made the 20 th century so dark. The striving to be successful, the best, the most dominant will make people perform incredible and inspiring things but it will also make them give legitimacy to the worst monstrosities. How do we draw the line between the good and bad aspect of wanting individual and collective success?

Maybe we should stop looking at success as part of domination and make it part of what makes us authentic as human beings. What do I mean? If we start celebrating everyday people when they express themselves or make something that is fulfilling for them and makes other people grow we will support others to develop this aspect of their humanity and not concentrate on domination and subordination. We should support the celebration of collective endeavors that strive to enhance the human race as a whole and not adore individual examples as if they were the meaning of life.

The secret to success is not in money and fame, but in reaching that feeling of fulfillment when you know you have accomplished something that truly matters to you and other people around you. Dreaming big and then having it, it’s not impossible.

If you’ve been feeling a little low lately, this essay on success is sure to boost your motivation levels and set the goals right for you! We hear about so many successful people from all the areas. Some of them may be our favorite singers, actors, scientists, writers, social workers, politicians, and what not. Their achievements inspire the hearts of many and urge them to do better.

While we tend to focus on the sensation of the final outcome, the journey toward the goal is what matters the most. Sadly, human nature forces us to look at everything through the eyes of instant gratification. But the stories of success are not created overnight. In real life, any small big achievement demands tons of efforts and sacrifices.

If success is a building, consider each effort to be a brick, that has to be put in day and night tirelessly. Dreaming about achieving a goal in life is a lovely idea. Nonetheless, working on it every day is more than just a fantasy. You have to make it happen.

Do you pray or meditate? What happens at that moment? You sit quietly and focus all your attention and energy into the prayer or in watching those thoughts. Prayer commands sincerity. True worshipping is when the heart is pure and honest.

In the same way, success is a conscientious phenomenon. It asks for dedication and ethical diligence. For a real success, there are no shortcuts and there is no quitting too! Yes, we all get tired and hopeless. That doesn’t mean we have to give in to those feelings and quit. Keep working no matter what!

At times, when you feel that you can’t go on anymore, take a break. Rejuvenate yourself, talk to your loved ones, rest a lot, create a fresh perspective. And come back again with a greater force and zeal. You never know when the efforts will turn into the sweet fruits of success. One thing common in all the great personalities was that they never quit!

Personal Definition of Success

There is no fixed definition of success. You see, success is quite a relative term and its meaning changes from one person to another. However, it is sure to say that being able to feel content with your life and achieve what you dreamed of, is what makes you a successful person!

A prosperous life is not strictly about having all the materialistic comforts around. To some extent, this may be true. But, all in all, it’s only a microscopic way to measure someone’s success.

Let us introduce you to some of the most powerful quotes on success given by the different eminent personalities.

Everybody’s favorite, the great feminist and poetess, Maya Angelou says, “Success is liking yourself, liking what you do, and liking how you do it.”

Winston Churchill quotes it as, “Success is stumbling from failure to failure with no loss of enthusiasm.”

Not to mention, America’s former first lady, Michelle Obama who expresses her own views on success. According to her, “Success isn’t about how much money you make. It’s about the difference you make in people’s lives.”

In the words of Albert Einstein, “Strive not to be a success, but rather to be of value.”

Anne Sweeney, who remained the president of the Disney Channel from 1996 to 2014. In her words, “Define success on your own terms, achieve it by your own rules, and build a life you’re proud to live.”

It is evident enough how these miraculous and charismatic visionaries have described success in various terms and that there is no particular way to define it. The only authentic parameter should be your own satisfaction and happiness.

What is Success

We have understood that success is an abstract notion. Now, it is time to get to the bottom and explore some basic questions about it. Have you ever tried to inquire into what success means to you? What are the things that would make you convinced that you are a successful person now? Does your heart yearn for fame, money, peace, joy, love, or something else?

These questions are crucial. They make your mind clear and set your priorities more effectively. Always remember that a virtue that appeals to you may not mean the same to another person. Everybody has their own preferences and goals in life.

The bottom line is regardless of what the goal is, we can each be successful in our lives as long as the achievement makes us happy and content. It could be your education, a well-paying job, having a loving family, social security, or freedom to live the way you want to.

Anything, no matter how small or big, that fills us with a sense of purpose and gratifies the heart leads to success. If you are a happy person and love your life, then success is yours! For a long time, our minds have been trained to believe that money is the greatest source of joy. However, it’s not true!

Undoubtedly, wealth is a strong means to create comfort and security for us. But if it was the only thing needed for success, why do the richest people still deal with depression, anxiety, fears, and failures? Have you ever thought about it?

Physical wealth does not guarantee an insusceptibility to dissatisfaction and failure. Thinking otherwise would only create a bottomless void within you. People madly run after money and career. And yet when they are well-established, they still may not feel the joy and peace within. What is the missing piece in their lives?

Success in Life

Life is a rollercoaster, isn’t it! We all have our own strengths and weaknesses. Overcoming your flaws and frailty is a victory in itself. If you are thinking of coming out as a winner in life, don’t confine yourself to monetary values. With money, you may feel “technically” rich and yet have no access to the truest joy.

There are many dimensions to success. But everything depends upon our ability to recognize them. What are these dimensions, by the way! Let us explore a few of them.

You must have heard the famous quote, “Health is Wealth”. We need to understand the hidden value of this quote today more than ever. Ask yourself, if you would be able to enjoy anything in the same way if you were suffering from an acute or chronic illness? No, but such physical ailments are a bitter truth to many. To these people, achieving a partial or full recovery, having a long and respectful life is a success.

For the emotional souls, having their loved ones around, giving them a quality life, and taking care of them is what counts as the real victory. A person who cares about the whole society, for him/ her the true meaning of succeeding would be providing the basic amenities to the underprivileged, fighting for human rights, or creating awareness.

And yes, the biggest of the aims could be as simple and meaningful as leading a peaceful life. It could be about not having regrets and ill feelings toward others. They could also be as big as winning a gold medal in the Olympics, breaking the stereotypes, getting out of a toxic relationship and having a stable life.

The point is, success cannot be put into a singular category. And comparing one’s goal with the other person would be like comparing apple to an orange, or fruits to vegetables. Each person is unique. Their journey of life is different and so are their goals and parameters of success.

Success for Students

The keys to successful academic life are open secrets. As a student, your progress depends on the level of self-discipline, dedication, and hard work. If you are able to pull off these habits in long-term success would never leave you. Right? Nonetheless, the matter is not so simple.

In today’s time, students are looking for “success” more desperately than ever! Considering the cut-throat competitions, it is quite understandable also. The pressure of family’s expectations makes things even more complicated. The students have no option except to excel in their studies, but at what costs?

First of all, academic success is dependent on a limited number of subjects. The true potential of a child or a young one cannot be fairly measured based on such a narrow line. Moreover, somehow we have come to believe that excellent grades are a must for a student’s survival in this world. Fortunately, that’s not completely correct.

The practical life is much more than a few subjects. Most of the things we learn at school and colleges are plain theories. The bookish knowledge hardly proves to be of any help in the real world. What makes you rich is the experiences you gain on a daily basis.

Of course, this doesn’t mean that grades and books shouldn’t be taken seriously at all. You need to understand that these things play a partial role in forming the ladder of success. The better word to focus on would be ‘growth’.

If winning the race and grabbing a seat in some reputed college takes a toll on your mental, physical, and psychological health, then, we are seriously doing something wrong here. After all, these are the same factors leading to the rising number of suicides among the youths.

Not getting good marks doesn’t mean that you are not good enough for anything. It just means that you haven’t explored everything yet. There are many great personalities like Einstein, Leonardo da Vinci, J.K. Rowling, who were a failure on the scales of conventional methods. But they proved everyone wrong.

All you need to remember is that never lose faith in yourself. If you really love what you do and consistently pour all of your energy into that task, then, definitely success is waiting for you! Make a routine of your choice and follow it religiously. Stay punctual. Fix your eyes on the goal and keep working.

Success and Hard Work

You can only work hard when you are fit overall. A good health is not just about having a strong body but also a strong mind and willpower. For all these things, you need energy. So, pay attention to things that you are feeding to your sensory organs. This includes from the proper diet to releasing stress, stay positive, working out, having those around who believe in you.

Don’t just work hard on your curriculum only. Take charge of other aspects too. As much as possible, include healthy foods in the diet. Staying positive induces good hormones in the body and the effect clearly shows in your performance. To strengthen your mental health, meditate every day.

Sitting around greenery, talking to your loved ones, reading positive books, are some of the other ways to replenish your energy levels. Make sure to work out every day, or at least go for a 30-minutes walk. Keep yourself hydrated. Drink plenty of water and other fluids.

Apart from focusing on the positive steps, be careful of the negative factors too. For instance, any negative conversation or toxic people in your life may suck away all your energy and charm. Try your best to avoid these triggers. Not only that, distractions like television, online chats, social media, parties, etc. should not be underestimated.

Keep your body and mind clean like a temple. It will help you work harder and with more effectiveness. There are no shortcuts to success. However, prefer to work smart rather than work hard. Never ever neglect the amount of sleep you get. There is no substitute for proper sleep.

Lack of sleep makes you cranky. Your concentration and memory become poorer. The learning becomes slower. So, a million dollar advice would be to get sufficient sleep, that means up to 8-10 hours. A few hours may be up and down depending on the person’s body requirements.

It is okay if the hard work makes you tired. However, the whole idea of hard work should not suffocate you. They say that if you love what you do, you don’t have to work a day in your life! If the set goals don’t well-align with your heart, explore something that does. Your goals should be set by you and not anyone else.

Success and Failure

Do you fear failure? What is the definition of failure according to you? How important is a failure for success? Let us find some answers to these amazing questions and doubts that we all face within us. To make things easier, here are a few great quotes for you!

“Only those who dare to fail greatly can ever achieve greatly.” – Robert F. Kennedy

“Giving up is the only sure way to fail.” – Gena Showalter

“I have not failed. I’ve just found 10,000 ways that won’t work.” – Thomas A. Edison

Must have changed your perspective a bit! Well, it won’t be wrong to say that failure is a part of success. It is an inevitable part of that process. Like two sides of a coin. You cannot expect to taste success until you have learned to embrace the failures.

There is an interesting story about it with a strong message. There used to live a guy who owned a grand and luxurious car. That car always stayed inside the house. The man never drove it. One day, one of his friends visited him and asked the reason for not taking the car out on the road.

Do you know what the man replied? He said that he would take the car out when all the traffic lights are green. He was waiting for an impossible thing to happen! Can you believe that? It’s ironic but yes, we all do the same metaphorically.

When we don’t take steps due to the fear of failure, subconsciously, we are waiting for everything to be perfect. So perfect that there would be no tiny scope for failing. That means there would be no red lights at all. How is that even possible!

Leave the fear of failure behind. The only thing you should be scared of is not making efforts. Because that kills even the slightest chance of success. Be humble and embrace failure. Learn from your mistakes. These lessons are valuable. No book would teach you the way your experiences will.

Success is a cumulative and relative term. Without peace and love, money and fame don’t count as success. True success would satiate your soul. It would fill your life with joy. Shrug off the idea of comparing your life with someone else’s. Every person follows a different path and journey. That is why the meaning of success also varies from one individual to another.

No matter how difficult or impossible seems the goal, never quit. Keep working and one day you would succeed. Don’t confine your ambitions to just making money. Listen to your heart and follow it. The voices within us are our guiding lights!

Try to be a good person before becoming a successful person. Only an individual who has earned the love and respect of all has achieved the truest success.

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The True Meaning of Success Without Its Label Definition

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Published: Jul 3, 2023

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What is the True Definition of Success?

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• THEATRICAL VERSION of the film
• DOLBY VISION/HDR PRESENTATION
• Audio: English – DTS HD Master Audio 5.1 Surround, French - Parisian, German, Italian, Japanese, Spanish - Castilian Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround
• Subtitles: English, English SDH, Danish, Dutch, Finnish, French – Parisian, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Norwegian, Spanish – Castilian, Swedish
• THEATRICAL AND EXTENDED VERSIONS of the film branched
• Commentary by Adam McKay, Will Ferrell, Lou Rawls, Andy Richter , Kyle Gass, Paul Rudd , David Koechner , and Christina Applegate
• " Afternoon Delight " Music Video
• ESPN SportsCenter Audition – Ron Burgundy
• Audio: English – DTS HD Master Audio 5.1 Surround, French - Parisian, Spanish – Castilian Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround
• Subtitles: English, English SDH, French, Spanish
• WAKE UP RON BURGUNDY: THE LOST MOVIE
• Intro-Commentary with Will Ferrell and Aaron Zimmerman
• Award Speech
• Raw Footage "Good Takes"
• "Afternoon Delight" Recording Session
• Cast Auditions
• Table Read 6/2/03
• Playback Video
• Commercial Break
• Audio: English Stereo
• Subtitles: English, French, Spanish Latin American
• Rigid board slipcase
• 5 x Art Cards
• 5 x Character Cards
• Channel 4 News Sticker
• The Many Months of Burgundy' Booklet
• Capacity Envelope

It was heartening to see the masterful Wim Wenders premiere two films at the 2023 Cannes Film Festival. His best narrative feature in years, " Perfect Days ," received more fanfare, but this 3D documentary, now available under the Janus Contemporaries branch of the Criterion Collection, made for an interesting companion. It's a delicate, almost somber portrait of Wim's friend Anselm Kiefer , a painter and sculptor whose work grapples with the complex history of his country. Of course, Wenders doesn't make standard bio-docs, and his film almost marries his art with that of his subject's, especially in 3D. Janus/Criterion includes a 3D Blu-ray in this release, by the way, for those with such technical capabilities.

• Meet the Filmmaker, a new interview with director Wim Wenders

" The Boy and the Heron "

If you thought Hayao Miyazaki's Oscar winner was gorgeous on the big screen, you really need to see it in 4K. This release from GKIDS and Shout is a stunner, a reminder of how beautifully timeless this film already feels. The Dolby track also reminds one of the stunning grace of Joe Hisaishi 's score, one of my favorites of the decade. The special features here are also strong, including storyboards and interviews. This will likely be Miyazaki's final film, and it will go down in history as one of the best closing acts in film history. Note: There's a steelbook edition with excellent cover art but the same special features as the standard 4K release.

• DOLBY VISION/HDR PRESENTATION OF THE FILM
• DOLBY ATMOS AUDIO TRACK
• Feature-Length Storyboards
• Interview with Composer Joe Hisaishi
• Interview with Producer Toshio Suzuki
• Interview with Supervising Animator Takeshi Honda
• Drawing with Takeshi Honda
• "Spinning Globe" Music Video
• Teasers & Trailers

" Brokeback Mountain "

The story of " Crash " becoming one of the most hated Best Picture winners of all time often doesn't include the film that almost everyone thought would win that night, especially after its director, Ang Lee , took home his first trophy: "Brokeback Mountain." Based on the short story of the same name by Annie Proulx, this drama is still incredibly powerful, thanks in large part to Lee's nuanced direction of his performers, especially Oscar nominees Jake Gyllenhaal and Heath Ledger , whose snub for the Oscar for Best Actor actually felt like the biggest crime of the night to this critic (as much as I also love PSH's work in " Capote "). Ledger's work here is unreal, a captivating portrait of a man struggling with his place in the world.

• NEW 4K MASTER FROM THE ORIGINAL CAMERA NEGATIVE
• NEW Audio Commentary by Film Historian/Writer Julie Kirgo
• Sharing the Story: The Making of Brokeback Mountain (20:47)
• From Script to Screen: Interviews with Larry McMurtry and Diana Ossana (10:53)
• A Groundbreaking Success: Featurette (17:13)
• Directing from the Heart: Featurette with Ang Lee (7:27)
• On Being a Cowboy: Featurette (5:44)
• Music from the Mountain: Featurette with Gustavo Santaolalla
• Impressions from the Film: Photo Slideshow
• Theatrical Trailer and TV Spots

" Captain Phillips "

Speaking of Oscar crimes, it will never make sense to me that Tom Hanks was snubbed for even a nomination for his performance in this chilling thriller from Paul Greengrass , the director of " United 93 ." Hanks plays Richard Phillips, the captain of the Maersk Alabama, which was hijacked by Somali pirates in 2009. There's no anniversary here, but Sony has deemed it the right time to drop a Steelbook 4K version of the movie nonetheless. Maybe it will allow for a greater appreciation of Hanks' work here, especially in a scene late in the film that haunts me, the one in which Phillips finally realizes he's safe and the tension that he's been carrying in his body literally comes out through all of his muscles. It's a reminder that Hanks somehow went from one of our most honored actors in the '90s to one of our most underrated two decades later.

• Commentary with Director Paul Greengrass
• Capturing Captain Phillips – in-depth behind-the-scenes featurettes on making the acclaimed film
• Theatrical Trailer

" Civil War "

This is a tough one. As is often the case when I catch up with a film that has produced such incredibly divisive responses, I see both sides of the debate here. On the one hand, Alex Garland's film is an ambitious, gorgeously shot piece of filmmaking. On the other, bigger hand, for this viewer, it's a provocation that often feels ungrounded, as if it's never taking place in the real world. The reading that the film is more about journalism than the zeitgeist works, but only to a certain extent when Garland peppers his script with references to places like Crawfordsville (which is not an accident). Ultimately, I don't think Garland fully has a grip on what he's trying to say with "Civil War," but he's strong enough at the craft of filmmaking as a director that I was never bored watching him reach for it.

• Torn Asunder: Waging Alex Garland's Civil War Six-Part Documentary
• Amazon Blu-ray Exclusive: Director and Cast Q&A

" Diary of the Dead "

Man, I miss George Romero . One of the best directors of all time (not just horror, any genre), Romero reshaped the American filmmaking landscape. But by the time this 2007 film was released, a lot of people were taking the master for granted. The reboot of the "Dead" films in " Land of the Dead " was pretty well-received, but the lack of star power for this fifth film "of the Dead" led to it being largely ignored. Sure, it's no "Dawn of the Dead," but few movies are, and it's a reminder that Romero was taking risks with form (making a found footage movie) and playing with interesting ideas late into his career. 

• Feature commentary by Writer-Director George A. Romero , Director of Photography Adam Swica, and Editor Michael Doherty
• For the Record: Feature-Length Documentary on the Film's Cast, Crew & Creation
• The Roots: The Inspiration for the Film
• The First Week: A Visit to the Set
• Familiar Voices: Cameo Outtakes
• MySpace Contest Winners: 5 Zombie films from Filmmaker Fans
• Character Confessionals

"Farewell My Concubine"

One of the best films of the '90s was given a lavish 4K restoration and re-released last year in a new director's cut that I reviewed here . My admiration and love for Chen Kaige 's epic period piece should be clear enough in that 4-star review, and so I was happy to learn that Criterion would handle the home release of that version of the film. Everything in that review remains the same, of course, and the physical version includes a few archival pieces (an interview from its theatrical and a documentary from its DVD release) along with a new conversation about the movie between a scholar and a producer. It's a slight release for Criterion, but the film alone makes it worth owning.

• NEW 4K RESTORATION of the original director's cut, with 5.1 surround DTS-HD Master Audio soundtrack
• New conversation between Chinese-cultural-studies scholar Michael Berry and producer Janet Yang
• Documentary from 2003 on the making of the film
• Interview from 1993 with director Chen Kaige conducted by journalist Charlie Rose
• New English subtitle translation
• PLUS: An essay by author and scholar Pauline Chen

" The First Omen "

What a stunner. Not only is this one of the best debuts of the year, it's one of the best major studio horror films in many years. Taking place before the action of 1976's "The Omen," this superior film stars Nell Tiger Free ("Servant") as an American novitiate named Margaret Daino, who has come to serve at an orphanage in Rome in 1971, where, well, things are getting weird. Something very wrong is happening at Vizzardeli, but Arkasha Stevenson 's film is more interested in creating a haunting, unsettling mood than it is in the specifics of the plot. The practical effects rule, Aaron Morton's cinematography is gorgeous, and the editing by Bob Murawski and Amy E. Duddleston is some of the best of the year. This is a fearless piece of filmmaking, filled with artistry and ideas in ways that modern horror is too rarely allowed to be. See it. 

• The Mystery of Margaret – Join director Arkasha Stevenson and stars Nell Tiger Free, Bill Nighy and Maria Caballero as they dive into the character of Margaret, her relationships with other characters, and how she's manipulated while trying to solve the film's horrifying mystery.
• The Director's Vision – Director Arkasha Stevenson talks about her love of horror films, the opportunity to expand on The Omen legacy, and crafting The First Omen entirely through a female lens. She also describes shooting in Rome, and the cast recounts working with Arkasha.
• Signs of The First Omen – Join the director and talented artists as they reveal some of the symbolism within the set designs and the costumes. Learn how the use of practical effects blurs the line between what is real and what is not in The First Omen's terrifying world.

" The Last Stop in Yuma County "

Do you miss the work of the Coen brothers? What about the wave of filmmakers trying to be Quentin Tarantino after he broke through? I've got a movie for you. While " Fargo " and " Pulp Fiction " wannabes led to a bunch of junk, Francis Gallupi's throwback feels fresh and, most of all, fun. The fantastic Jim Cummings stars as a traveling knives salesman who arrives at the titular remote gas station in the 1970s, where, well, things go very wrong. Jocelin Donahue , Sierra McCormick , Alex Essoe , Barbara Crampton , and the iconic Richard Brake star in an unpredictable, violent, funny, strange piece of work. You know, the kind they used to make more often.

• Three audio commentary tracks
• Making-of featurette

"The Man From U.N.C.L.E."

Crawling to just under $50 million in the States, this Guy Ritchie film was considered a failure on its release in 2015. However, it almost immediately developed a vocal fan base, people ready to proclaim it a misunderstood masterpiece. To this day, when those social prompts pop up about movies that deserve a sequel, this film almost always surfaces, probably second only to " The Nice Guys ." So fans of this loose version of the '60s show of the same name will be happy to know that Arrow heard their cries and gave Ritchie's flick the VERY special treatment, complete with a new transfer, special features, and awesome packaging. New interviews and featurettes are joined by all the archival ones from previous releases, making this one of the season's most impressive physical media releases. 

• Dolby Vision/HDR presentation of the film
• Original lossless Dolby Atmos sound
• Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing
• Brand new audio commentary by critics Bryan Reesman and Max Evry
• The Hollywood Way - brand new interview with co-writer/producer Lionel Wigram
• A Lineage of Bad Guys - brand new interview with actor Luca Calvani
• Legacy of U.N.C.L.E. - brand new featurette celebrating the original 1960s TV series and its influence on the 2015 movie, featuring Helen McCarthy, David Flint and Vic Pratt
• Cockneys and Robbers - brand new featurette exploring director Guy Ritchie's oeuvre, featuring Kat Hughes, Hannah Strong and Josh Saco
• Spy Vision: Recreating 60s Cool, A Higher Class of Hero, Metisse Motorcycles: Proper and Very British, The Guys from U.N.C.L.E. and A Man of Extraordinary Talents - five archival featurettes exploring the making of the film
• U.N.C.L.E.: On-Set Spy - four archival, bite-sized featurettes going behind the scenes on the film set
• Theatrical trailer
• Image gallery
• Double-sided fold-out poster, featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Dare Creative
• Illustrated collector's booklet featuring new writing by Barry Forshaw, and a reprinted article from CODEX Magazine on the film's cinematography
• Reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Dare Creative

"Perfect Days"

A nominee for the Oscar for Best International Feature Film, this gentle character study felt like a comeback for one of the best filmmakers of all time in Wim Wenders. The director of " Wings of Desire " and " Until the End of the World " co-wrote and directed the story of Hirayama, played with gentle grace by Koji Yakusho , who won the Best Actor Award at Cannes last year. Hirayama spends his days cleaning toilets in Tokyo, taking solace in the little things in life as the film about him deftly reveals details about his past. Without ever succumbing to melodrama or the sense that it's looking down on a menial worker, "Perfect Days" is a captivating gem. It's also worth noting that the Criterion edition now available includes an interview with the charming Wenders and a short by the filmmaker, available exclusively here.

• 4K DIGITAL MASTER, approved by director Wim Wenders, with 5.1 surround DTS-HD Master Audio soundtrack
• HDR PRESENTATION OF THE FILM
• New interview with Wenders
• Interview with actor Koji Yakusho
• Some Body Comes into the Light (2023), a short by Wenders, featuring a new introduction by the director
• Interview with producer Koji Yanai , founder of the Tokyo Toilet project

" Risky Business "

One of the best movies of the '80s, this was still a very unexpected inclusion in the Criterion Collection, but a very welcome one. For those not as old as this writer, it's hard to fully explain what a seismic announcement of a star it felt like when Tom Cruise slid across that floor. And a reappraisal of this film as a smart, sexy, thrilling piece of work is long overdue. To that end, Criterion includes a 4K restoration of the director's cut and theatrical release overseen by director Paul Brickman and producer Jon Avnet , who also returns for a new interview about the movie. Archival features imported for this release include a commentary featuring Cruise himself and fascinating screen tests of the actor and his gorgeous co-star Rebecca De Mornay . You can see the future star even then.

• NEW 4K RESTORATION of the director's cut and the original theatrical release, supervised and approved by director Paul Brickman and producer Jon Avnet, with 5.1 surround DTS-HD Master Audio soundtracks
• Audio commentary for the original theatrical release featuring Brickman, Avnet, and actor Tom Cruise
• New interviews with Avnet and casting director Nancy Klopper
• New conversation between editor Richard Chew and film historian Bobbie O'Steen
• The Dream Is Always the Same: The Story of "Risky Business," a program featuring interviews with Brickman, Avnet, cast members, and others
• Screen tests with Cruise and actor Rebecca De Mornay
• English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing
• PLUS: An essay by film curator and critic Dave Kehr

" Run Lola Run "

There was a brief window in the late '90s and early '00s when it felt like international cinema would be embedded in American filmmaking more seamlessly than it ended up being. " Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon " was the apex of this, but don't forget the arthouse success of Tom Tykwer 's riveting "Run Lola Run," a movie that won the Audience Award at Sundance on its way to an Oscar nomination almost a year later. Franka Potente stars as Lola, who does a lot of running in an effort to get the money to save her boyfriend. Recently given a theatrical release in 4K to mark its 25th anniversary, that version now comes home from Sony, accompanied by the special features from its initial physical release.

• Audio Commentary with Director Tom Tykwer and Actor Franka Potente
• Audio Commentary with Director Tom Tykwer and Editor Mathilde Bonnefoy
• Making-Of Featurette
• Still Running Featurette
• "Believe" Music Video

" Taxi Driver "

A solid candidate for one of the ten best films of at least the '70s (and maybe longer), Martin Scorsese 's thriller remains one of the most influential films of all time. Robert De Niro gave an instantly iconic performance as Travis Bickle, who comes home now in a steelbook collector's edition that houses a 4K version of the film that has been restored from the original camera negative. The standard Blu-ray that's also included comes with a ton of special features, including commentaries by Paul Schrader and Scorsese himself, and much more. This is a must-own collector's edition of a true masterpiece.

Buy it here

• Restored from the original camera negative, presented in 4K resolution with Dolby Vision
• English 5.1 + mono
• Making Taxi Driver Documentary
• Storyboard to Film Comparisons with Martin Scorsese Introduction
• Animated Photo Galleries
• 20th Anniversary Re-Release Trailer
• Feature presented in high definition, sourced from the 4K master
• English 5.1
• 40-Minute Taxi Driver Q&A featuring Martin Scorsese, Robert De Niro, Jodie Foster and Many More Recorded Live at the Beacon Theatre in New York City at the 2016 Tribeca Film Festival
• Commentary with Director Martin Scorsese and Writer Paul Schrader Recorded by the Criterion Collection
• Commentaries by Writer Paul Schrader and by Professor Robert Kolker
• Martin Scorsese on Taxi Driver
• Influence and Appreciation: A Martin Scorsese Tribute
• Producing Taxi Driver
• God's Lonely Man
• Taxi Driver Stories
• Travis' New York
• Travis' New York Locations

" Twister "

In anticipation of the success of " Twisters ," Sony released the 1996 Jan de Bont original in a sharp 4K release that includes a new interview with the director and a solid (if not spectacular) audio track for the film. Almost three decades later, "Twister" is goofier and better than you remember, a reminder of Bill Paxton's excellence and De Bont's skill at pacing a blockbuster like this one. The dialogue can be clunky, but people didn't come to "Twister" for character work then, and they're not going to care now, especially with a 4K picture to really amplify what works about the movie.

• NEW The Legacy of Twister: Taken by the Wind - Jan de Bont discusses the groundbreaking film
• Audio commentary by Jan de Bont and Visual Effects Supervisor Stefen Fangmeier
• Featurettes:
• Chasing the Storm: Twister Revisited
• Anatomy of a Twister
• HBO First Look: The Making of Twister
• Van Halen "Humans Being" Music Video

" The Zone of Interest "

The Oscar winner for Best International Feature has now been given a physical Blu-ray release from A24 that's available exclusively through their shop. Special features for a film like this can be tricky in that it doesn't really support standard EPK nonsense. So A24 has given it a different treatment, taking the project seriously with physical postcards and a 32-minute documentary instead of the typical, choppy featurettes. To this viewer, "The Zone of Interest" feels like more and more of an essential film of its era with each passing day, a major piece of work that will stand the test of time.

• Postcards with stills photography by Agata Gryzbowska and Kuba Kaminski
• A short documentary on Aleksandra Bystroń-Kołodziejczyk 
• A recording of “Sunbeams” (written and performed by Joseph Wulf)
• 32-minute making-of documentary “Filming Zone,” directed, edited & photographed by Filip Skrońc

Brian Tallerico

Brian Tallerico is the Managing Editor of RogerEbert.com, and also covers television, film, Blu-ray, and video games. He is also a writer for Vulture, The Playlist, The New York Times, and GQ, and the President of the Chicago Film Critics Association.

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