Musings On Success

Dear One,

Another icon bites the dust hard - posthumously.

This time it's was the King of Rock n Roll himself - Elvis Presley. Recent news say, he wasn't what he was portrayed to be; suave and gentlemanly. Instead, he had a dark side, safely hidden away from the eyes of  prying public, manned successfully by his closest associates. Now 32 years after his death, old vicious ghosts are reappearing from his legendary grave. A new book claims, he was a hopeless womanizer, and even at 40, he loved incessant romping sessions with teen age girls, aged 14.

Elvis was a classic example of rags to riches story. Born in abject poverty, he rose to meteoric heights even  before 24. He was very handsome, extremely rich and famous, a human magnet for women and had an entire nation eating from his hands. That's all is required to consummate your ultimate success. Or is it?

It makes me wonder, does all the fame and fortune in the world really make you successful. Is it the yard stick to measure the fructification of innumerable hours of hard work and toil in pursuit of success? I know success is subjective as for each one of us, the definition of success varies. But most of us these days, equate success with the quality of our own spending capabilities. Money power, we think, definitely makes one powerful and successful.

I humbly beg to differ. What's the use of so much money, if you have to lose your peace of mind and freedom  forever. We give glorious examples of stars and celebrities who are highly successful and lead a life of glamour and luxury, all 365 days a year. But, behind the scene, it's a different story altogether. I had my career stint with the entertainment sector for some time, and the real story of these stars and starlets is utterly horrifying. They pretend to be happy and blissfully unconcerned, whereas the truth is highly fabricated and far beyond their self-comforting lies.

Most of these stars and high fliers, are highly deplorable and desolate as they just can't handle their own successes. Instead, it is skillfully dictated by their all-powerful Managers. They are so dependent on their secretaries or managers, that they completely forget, they have a mind and life of their own. Glamour and fame takes a heavy toll on these celebrities, wanting them to run far away. Unfortunately, the taste of fame and fortune lingers for a long time to come, making them it's prized slave. They are pitiable souls who can't seem to live with it or even more, live without it in peace. They count their blessings as a curse in disguise.

So what is true success, anyway?

Success for me personally, is to stop worrying about tomorrow and start living today as if there is no tomorrow. Money is just a means to achieve success. A vehicle is for transporting us from one destination to another; but when we insist to tag it along to every nook and corner, it becomes a meaningless obsession. We too, are obsessed in some way or the other. We want to 'possess' almost everything for ourselves, not letting others even to dream of them. In this rat race of money and power, I believe, the true measure of success has lost its true identity. Success is now masked in name, fame, money, power, status and prestige.

However, success for me, is to hold on to things that really matter and fearlessly letting go of those that don't. Success, should not confine you to it's limiting walls; instead it should open your hands and hearts to reach out to the less fortunate. I do not equate my success to what or who I work for, not even to the professional titles that have been conferred upon me from time to time. In fact, success is simply how I work and what becomes of me as a person.

In our pursuit towards immortality, let us always remember that success, like attitude, is a state of mind and not the state of our pockets. The measure of true success is in the number of genuine smiles that flash across your face, the precious moments you get to spend with loved ones, the comfort of a peaceful night's sleep after a hard day's work, making others smile in unison, doing absolutely nothing sometimes and just being who you are and not pretending what others want you to be. That is success. (You are free to differ in view!)

Money and success, may not necessarily complement each other. It is in our wisdom to differentiate both and enjoy it wisely. Be happy. Be successful.

Peace in oneself. Peace in the world.