Re: What makes a person successful?

In article <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>, rissa <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
wrote:

> I am a senior in college who will be graduating in Dec 2003  I plan to
> go into the business world and I find myself pondering on what makes a
> person successful in life.  I have narrowed it down to three key
> things.  Having the right attitude, the right skills and setting goals
> in life. Can anyone add to this or does anyone have a different idea
> of what makes one successful?  If so I would love a response.

There are all different ways to define success.  I personally see
success as being able to determine what I want to do with my time,
and not have to answer to others.  Others see success in terms of
job title or money, especially if these are earned more quickly
than average.  Still others see success as being happy in what they
are doing, even if they would rather be doing something else.

The best definition of success that I have heard is someone doing
the best they can with what they were given.  That means that a
70 IQ person has a chance for success, even if they are never going
to have corporate job and earn the big money, and accounts for a
240 IQ person who works as a night janitor.

To be honest, I see the "right attitude, right skills, and setting
goals" as being a cliche.  The problem is that you likely cannot
define what these attitudes and skills are.  For example, what
attitude does Ross Perot have that makes him more successful than
the rest of us?  What skill does Bill Gates have that any other
programmer from his era did not have?  And think of Arnold, who
will likely become CEO of California today despite having very
poor attutudes against women (having assulted something like 20
women in the recent past)--does that mean groping women is a
"right skill" to have?

If you are focused on corporate or monetary success, I see that as
more of a sorting game.  Consider 100 people lined up, each with
a penny.  Have them all flip the penny, and those with tails leave
the game.  The remaining people flip again, and again those with
tails leave the game.  Repeat this process until only one person
remains.  That person is the winner.  Does that make this person
the most successful penny flipper?  No.  It is basically a random
event.  As long as the game is going on, there is going to be a
winner.  You cannot say that the person is a superior penny flipper,
just that they happened to have heads come up everytime they needed
it to happen.

That is a lot like success.  Bill Gates might not be the smartest
person in the world, or the best businessman, rather, he just had
his penny come up heads more than anyone else.  If it hadn't been
Bill Gates, it would have been someone else.

My point is that it isn't the best or the brightest that always
makes it.  Luck, being in the right spot at the right time, and
knowing the right people have a lot more to do with business and
financial success.  Relating this back to our sorting example,
you have to be in the game, and be flipping that penny if you
want to get anywhere.  Often times, persistence is a major factor.
Look at Charles Schwab, who went bankrupt (more than once) before
making it big, or Harlan Sanders, who didn't start KFC until he
was 65 years old.

Zig Ziglar probably said it the best.  I don't recall his exact
words, but he says that you have to plan to win and prepare to
win so you are ready when your number is called.  Think of the
role of a backup quarterback in football.  The backup has to be
just as good as the regular quarterback if the team has any hope
of winning after the regular quarterback goes down.  The backup
has to know the system, and practice each week, never knowning 
if they are going to get that chance.  But if they are called, they
have to be ready to go.  Can you imagine the alternative?  The
regular quarterback gets hurt, so the back up tells the coach,
hey, hold up the game for an hour while I run some practice
patterns with receivers and learn the system.  The other lesson
here is that someone can have all the skills, the right attitude,
and be ready to win, but never get the chance.  Is that person
then not a success?

-john-

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John A. Weeks III            952-432-2708         [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Newave Communications                       http://www.johnweeks.com
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