What does it mean to be successful?
In today’s world, you hear a lot about hustle culture and “always be grinding.” Career coaches and boss babes tell us that if we keep up the pace and work hard enough, we can have a wealthy and successful life.
When most of us think of success it often involves a businessperson with stocks and portfolios. Society runs on the idea that the more you can produce, the more valuable you are. Your productivity levels allegedly equate to your level of success in life.
But, is that a life worth living?
Is that measurement of success the right way to define your life’s value?
Even creatives can fall into the productivity trap, as social media and consumerism breathe down the necks of artists and content creators.
That pressure to keep churning out more art to “stay relevant” and get more followers keeps building and building. It erupts when the creator becomes completely burned out and loses the love they felt when creating. All of their achievements suddenly feel hollow when the motivation to create is productivity, success, or wealth. The joy and fulfillment that they once felt after creating something has been stripped away and all that is left is what working society deems as valuable.
This brings to mind the legend of John Henry.
The legend tells of a black steel driver who competes against a steam-powered drill while clearing a tunnel for a railroad to be put in. When the railroad company brought in a steam-powered drill and said that this machine could drill faster than any man, John Henry took up the challenge. He wanted to prove that a black man could drill better than a machine. He held a hammer in each hand and went to work.
According to the legend, John Henry does beat the steam-powered drill, even driving his drill farther into the rock than the machine could because of the speed at which he swung his hammers. The man defeated the machine in the challenge and became a hero to the other workers.
But, do you know what happens to John Henry? He dies of exhaustion soon after winning this battle. He literally worked himself to death.
Moving away from the intended moral of the story, we see that John Henry died trying to match the pace of productivity. Was he successful? Yes. But was it worth it? Earning bragging rights is only useful if one is alive to brag. And this changed nothing: the railroad company would continue to use the steam-powered drill because it was now faster than any man alive.
John Henry’s life was worth more than what he or the railroad company valued it to be. A person’s life is worth more than just how productive they are.
If we continue to listen to society’s voice, telling us that success equals productivity, then we will only gain value as society metes it out.
But, we can decide that a successful life is not measured by output but by feeling fulfilled. You can still achieve great things and live joyfully by understanding the best pace for you. Neil Gaiman spent twelve years writing Coraline, averaging about ten words a day. That was the pace he could complete at the time and it worked for him. Coraline is now an award-winning and beloved story.
Success came to Neil Gaiman, not through frenzied productivity, but through fulfilling and enjoyable work.
Despite what the world would have us believe, success is not created by simply working yourself to the bone.
A successful life, a life worth living, is one that sees the value of what you produce—quality over quantity. You do not need society to tell you what is worthy of being created. The very act of creation is priceless.
Find what fulfills you and brings joy to you and those around you, and you will also find success.
Remember that your value lies within you. You and the life you create are worth infinitely more than anything productivity alone could ever achieve. So, stop listening to the world’s definition of success.
Go find success through fulfillment!
-Guest Article by Chelsea Thatcher
Chelsea is a neurospicy blogger and creative writer who is good at juggling tasks and finding balance in a hectic world. She uses writing to express herself and share her own journey through life, mental health, and family!
Go check out her blog and other writings at https://www.chelseathatcher.com/