Technique 7.14 Defining Success

Introduction

There are many ways of defining success in life around the important things in life: family, friendships, parenting, career, finance, health, community, education, wealth, materialistic possessions, etc.

Areas of success and performance in achieving success.

Notes
i) list any other areas that are applicable to you
ii) tick the appropriate box, ie your  current ranking from 1 to 5; with 1 being 'needs improvement', 3 it is 'acceptable' to 5 which is 'ideal'

Comments

Based on your ranking, you may need to adjust your life.

Realise that at different stages of your life, you have different priorities, eg elderly people focus less on career and more on health, wealth, community, family, etc; young professionals would have an increased focus on their career; when starting a family, there is increased focus on parenting, family, etc.

Need to understand what is either helping you to be successful or hindering it.

NB The most powerful influencers on your feeling of success:

- family and friends

- community (including workplace)

- celebrity or influencers (especially social media)

The last one has become more important with the growth of the Internet and resultant social media.

A vivid example of the power of the influencer is the fashion industry.
"...fashion brands and fashion media once had a symbolic relationship. Brands relied on printed magazines to tell the stories, while the magazine received large advertising spend and had access to fashion's front row. But the dynamic has changed. While the global luxury industry has become more powerful, many printed fashion magazines are a shell of their former selves..."
Lauren Sams, 2002a

In the early 1990s, bloggers replaced editors; with ad rates online a fraction of what charged in print. Then in 2010, the arrival of Instagram meant
"...People who once bought glossy magazines to flick through beautiful pictures could do exactly that, anytime, anywhere, on their phone, free..."
Lauren Sams, 2002a

At the same time, advertisers used their power and demanded more added value from the magazine, ie more editorial mentions and more product placement. Consequently, the lines between editorial comments and advertising became blurred in magazines.

There was a continuing boom in the status of influencer-generated content who createors were not concerned about the line between editorial comment and advertising. These influencers are now moving into e-newsletters where people are paying for content, ie through subscriptions or platforms.

On the negative side, influencers are seen as superficial and there remains
"...an audience hungry to know what to buy, what to wear and what, exactly, is happening in the fashion industry..."
Lauren Sams, 2002a