Building a Successful Life

Introduction

Speaker: Howard Stevenson
Key Note: Discussing life success and what it means to achieve it.
Personal Anecdote: Died once and survived; many personal and professional failures.
Focus: Explore why successful people may struggle with having successful children, and broader dive into defining and achieving success.

Initial Question: What does success mean?
Historical References: Thoughts from Aristotle, Herodotus (noting that a person’s success can only be assessed after death).
Unique Activities: Everyone's definition and experience of success is unique.
Success as a State: Considered a continual process rather than a final state.

Measurement Challenges: Hard to measure; varies based on criteria like money, fame, personal achievements, etc.
Perfect Profiles: There isn’t a single profile that defines success.
Instability: Success can be fleeting and context-dependent.
Comparisons: Comparing success with others or self can lead to dissatisfaction.
Success and Happiness: These aren’t always aligned, achieving one doesn’t guarantee the other.

Emotional Drivers: Complex emotions impact success differently for everyone.
Life Choices: Life is about making choices at crossroads without always knowing the outcome.
Transitions in Life: Understand when to move on from one phase to another.
Enough: Concept of defining what is “enough” in various domains to avoid unnecessary striving.
Dynamic Activity: Life requires continual effort and energy.
Four Domains of Satisfaction: Achievement, significance, happiness, legacy.

Achievement: Mastering goals, often competitive in nature (money, power, fame).
Significance: Positive impact on others, not solely focused on personal gain.
Happiness: Personal contentment and satisfaction, often independent of external achievements.
Legacy: Leaving something enduring, valued by others even after one's death.

Balance: Seek a balance rather than perfection across the domains of success.
Juggling Analogy: Life is like juggling, needing attention across various ‘balls’ without dropping any.
Know Your Values: How deeply internalized values shape our definition of success.
Role of Comparison: The danger of continual self-comparison leading to dissatisfaction.
Mentorship: Value in selecting mentors for different aspects of your life, akin to having a personal board of directors.
Planning for the Future: Plan with a long-term perspective in mind, focusing on the ripple effects of actions rather than immediate impacts.

Self-Evaluation: Who are you? What's important to you? What satisfactions are you on the way to missing?
Significance of Today: Realizing that every day is the first day of the rest of your life.