Thoughts on Success

I have a list of things that need to happen every day stuck on the screen of my computer. It’s not a long list but it is a full list. If I get it all done, plus the other things that come with each individual day, have I had a productive day? Is success determined by a to do list or is there something else involved?

If I don’t get everything done in a day that I put on my to do list I tend to beat myself up for a while and then promise I’ll do better tomorrow. While this routine allows me to sleep it leaves me in a circle of failure and just do better self talk. If you haven’t been there it’s not a fun place to be.

So what determines success? I read where Mack Brown, the coach of the Texas Longhorns told his team after they won the National Championship to enjoy the moment but to not let this accomplishment be then pinnacle of their lives. He told them to go be great Dads, great husbands, to go make a difference in the world.

Is success determined by getting the job done or is there more to it? I hope success is wrapped up in making this world a better place regardless of what needs to get done today. I hope your to do list is not the measuring stick used to determine if a day has been well spent or not. There are simple pleasures to precious to be missed that aren’t on any to do list I ever seen.

When I was a kid my mother insisted we turn the T.V. off during mealtime. She said mealtime was a time for meaningful conversation. She was right. Things like meaningful conversation, laughter, meditation, looking for the good in others, acts of kindness, sharing, sacrificing, playing and just enjoying the simple pleasures of life never seem to make my to do list and yet they are a much better way to determine if my day was successful or not.

Maybe we can all have more “successful days if we use a different measuring stick.