Who Defines Success?

Success: some define it as winning at a sporting event, some define it as an A on a paper, while others define success as simply making it through the day. When school tells us to be successful, what exactly does that mean? What does it mean for you? What does it mean to your guardians? Coaches? Friends?

Chances are that definition is different depending on who you ask. But is success really that personal? Or is it influenced by the people around you? Let me give you an example. You took a test and are now getting your results back. You get a C, the people around you get F’s. Suddenly next to them you seem intelligent, next to them you are deemed “successful.: Now you take that same test that you got a C on into a different room; in this room all of the people have gotten A’s. In this room you don’t seem intelligent; now you don't feel so successful. Suddenly success isn’t defined by you but by the people around you; suddenly success is now relative.

The theory of relativity was developed by Albert Einstein in 1915. The theory of general relativity states that the observed gravitational effect between masses results from their warping of spacetime. For example, if there was a ball falling from space, a person on a rocket and a person on Earth would see it fall at the same speed. However, the theory of special relativity, also developed by Albert Einstein, is an explanation of how speed affects mass, time, and space. Special relativity revolves around the idea of length contraction, which is when objects appear shorter the faster they are moving in relation to the observer. The idea of general and special relativity can be applied to the definition of success. In a way, general relativity is how you personally define success. It’s what success means to you, while special relativity shows that success is influenced by the success of the people around you.

But the definition of success varied greatly when I asked other teenagers. Some responded with emotional core values: “I think success is meeting whatever goals you set for yourself,” “Choosing a path of passion over a path of talent,” or “Getting through any hardships/problems in life.” Others’ responses were heavily tied with academic validation: “Winning awards; I won a silver medal in short story in the Scholastic Art and Writing Awards,”“Academic achievement, like working on a research project with a professor,” “Getting a report card with all A’s,” “Getting into an ivy league or ‘prestigious’ college.” While some believe that their success will come in the future like: “Being a famous actress,” “Being a famous author, film director, and actress, and live in a mansion,” “Having a stable writing career which I can support myself and loved ones with.” Other definitions were a lot more simple, like: “I haven’t cried yet today.”

Every day we hear the phrase “be successful.” Yet, success is so different to every person, so in reality, what is success? But more importantly, what does success mean to YOU?