Early Success
I caught a post over on Dan Miller’s 48 days blog titled ‘Success too early?’ Dan mentions Taylor Swift’s recent accomplishment of winning Entertainer of the Year from the CMA at only the age of 19. Dan Points out the list of lottery winners, childhood actors, and 21 year old NFL players who have risen to success quickly and crashed.
I began thinking about my own life and the success I have had. I reached a position of Assistant Vice President after only 3 years in banking and was Vice President of a over $2 billion bank at the age of 32. This made my mom and grandmother very happy, but I knew this was only the beginning of great things I would accomplish. I could have settled in and worked in banks the rest of my life, but that would have bored the hell out of me.
Life isn’t about reaching the top. It is about the journey and working your way to the top. I am passionate about climbing mountains. I have climbed many of Colorado’s 14,000 foot peaks as well as many smaller peaks. I don’t do it for the time I spend at the summit (although it is spectacular). I climb mountains for the climb itself. It is the journey that makes it so addicting. The hard work, dedication, and anticipation is thrilling.
To keep life interesting it is important to keep moving your goals. Take time to adapt your goals as you reach success. Don’t accept an early success as your only success. Always set high goals for yourself and raise them as you succeed. This will ensure that you will enjoy your life and your level of success is endless.
Truly successful people are always working towards a new goal. Accepting what you have as enough is what will keep you in a dead end situation. You are to be grateful for your accomplishments but always working for something better will keep you feeling alive.
At the age of 33 I walked away from banking because it was boring to me, I felt like I was as high of a position I could reach for the foreseeable future, and I saw opportunities that were more exciting for me. I am excited and passionate about everyday and the success that I have each day is so rewarding.
“What you get by achieving your goals is to as important as what you become by achieving your goals.” Henry David Thoreau