The Poppy – Success

Success Is a Worse Hazard for Warriors Than Failure – If the journey, not the arrival matters, battle-hardened warriors collapse on reaching Road’s End. The Poppy, source of lifesaving modern analgesic morphine, represents eternal sleep and endless dreaming. Greeks and Romans used these orange and red flowers as offerings to the dead – Westerners emblazon them on tombstones. Could it be that the very idea of “success” is something of a mirage?

Success Is How You Define It – Abraham Lincoln famously said people are about as happy as they make up their minds to be. If we define “success” as adulation by others, haven’t we given away ultimate power over our lives? Many people define success in material ways – it’s the only way to explain the salaries CEO’s pay themselves, while they freely admit nobody “needs” that much money. They don’t seem to be using it very responsibly either, so I judge them to be “unsuccessful.” Clearly the most important person to please is yourself and the challenge is: are you content?

Warrior Challenge – If success is “arrival”, doesn’t that imply a “finish line”? Do you really want to be finished? As we desire constant progress, then reaching the goal is death. But the opposite – endless striving – is just a treadmill. A “rat race”, in point of fact. So the ultimate success must be “contentment”. To be content we must assess our lives and come to terms with our missteps. Sometimes we discovered something even more wonderful that we didn’t even know we were searching for.

Warrior Danger – Our society views everything as a competition, and the fundamental danger is you comparing your INSIDES (i.e., how you feel) with everyone else’s “outsides” (i.e., how they LOOK.) You can see that’s nonsensical. We don’t see each other’s sadness and pain, only display and showmanship.

Warrior Opportunity – Success is a drug: don’t get addicted. Feel compassion for another’s hurt and struggle. Feel compassion (and forgiveness) for your own hurt and struggle. Assess your place on life’s path. Maybe you’re still on the edge of some great discovery, if so, keep going! Maybe it’s time to take stock of how far you’ve come and have a look at the big map. I like resting, thinking, reading and writing. Retired, I do exactly what I want to most days, surrounded by love. Feels like success to me.

Models – “without continual growth & progress, such words as improvement, achievement and success have no meaning” – Benjamin Franklin

“Start where you are. Use what you have. Do what you can” – Arthur Ashe

“There is always light – if we’re brave enough to see it, we’re brave enough to be it “ – Amanda Gorman

“Rules for success: 1. Believe in your ideas 2. Pick good people 3. Earn Respect 4. Always be a student 5. Enjoy what you do 6. Ask for advice 7. Learn to say No 8. Create the best products 9. Don’t take things personally 10. Create the future” – Bill Gates

#Haiku: The Future Is Now

Quotidian
Maps built
From shreds of
Daily goals –
Invisible glue