Alright, let me get this out of the way upfront. The word “success” sometimes makes me feel kind of icky. It’s one of those terms that manages to be both vague yet also tied to some very specific associations of money, status, and hierarchy. Because of this, I’ve been working on re-framing my relationship with the concept of success for a few years now.
Success does not have to be defined through a binary view of success vs failure, winning vs losing, having vs not having. Success does not have to mean climbing the corporate ladder or nailing every goal you set or having 100k social media followers. In fact, by unconsciously playing along with these kinds of unquestioned definitions of success you can easily find yourself despondent and uninspired.
These days, I’m a lot more fluid with how I define success for myself. It’s less about meeting rigidly defined standards and more about how I feel and the values that I live by. It’s less about pushing and forcing myself, and more about inspiring myself. Most of all, it’s about being authentic about what matters to me, and being compassionate to myself as I work towards those things.
If you think you could also benefit from taking a closer look at your relationship with the concept of success, grab a journal and some tarot cards ‘cuz this one’s for you! You can work with these questions however you’d like: perhaps just free write on each question, OR pull a card to prompt your answer for each question.
17 Questions to ask yourself
and your cards about success
• How does society define success?
• What parts of this definition resonate with me?
• Which parts of this definition do not resonate with me?
• What positive associations do I have with the concept of success?
• What unhealthy associations do I have with the concept of success?
• How do I define success for myself?
• Where might I need to re-evaluate my definition of success?
• What might I easily mistake for success?
• How attached am I to the idea of succeeding?
• How can I cultivate self-worth internally regardless of external success?
• What does authentic success feel like to me?
• How often do I feel successful?
• What personal successes have I overlooked?
• When and why did I last feel successful at a soul-level?
• What unhealthy ways might I sometimes gauge my success?
• What is the most healthy way for me to gauge my success?
• How can I cultivate an more inspiring and healthy relationship with the concept of success overall?
If you try this exercise, I’d be interested to hear your thoughts. Did this bring up anything particularly illuminating or useful for you? Leave a comment and let me know.
Oh, and if you liked this post, you might also enjoy 14 questions to ask yourself (and your cards) about love.
This will make an epic tarot journaling session. 😛 Our society definitely defines success in a very linear way. You’re either situated at one end of the binary or the other. You’re winner or a loser; you have a (socially acceptable) job or you don’t; you are in a (socially acceptable) relationship or not, yada yada yada. For me, I don’t really jam with the word “success”. Instead, I like the word “growth” much better. Life isn’t a race for me. Life is a tree. A tree continues to grow bigger and becomes more of itself every day. When I’m growing and learning, I feel that life is fulfilling and I’m moving forward with my life. When I’m growing and learning, I’m just me being me and being happy…somehow the word “success” isn’t necessary anymore. Life’s just awesome as it is. 🙂
Awesome blog post and journal prompts. Definitely gonna schedule in a date with the word “success” sometime this week… xoxo
I really like the word growth, too. It definitely resonates in a different way than ‘success’ for me. Thanks for sharing your thoughts and I hope the prompts do prove illuminating <3 🙂
I answered the questions as a live-streamed video-response. Apparently, I’m a shallow, materialistic, and occasionally petty person with an outsized concern for what other people think. Either my Tarot deck is in a spiteful mood today, or I might benefit from reevaluating my worldview, lol If you care to watch: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gyk-rj3EAuQ
Haha! I’m watching right now and really enjoying it so far.
Really loved the way you changed the concept of success. I too hold similar views and kinda believe that it’s the feeling that matters. Even if things are not happening the way I had planned but it gives me a great feeling and sense of calmness … well that’s success for me. Small events I cherish with family and loved ones is success … motivating someone from my tarot readings is success for me ….😃
Thanks for sharing your beautiful thoughts and these amazing 17 questions… I’m gonna try them out today 😃😃
Thanks, I’m glad this resonates! <3