Running Up That Hill — Book Brief
WHAT DOES SUCCESS MEAN TO YOU?
EXPLORE
Success is a familiar word, but its meaning is rarely as simple as it appears.
We inherit ideas about achievement from family, culture, education, work, society and the people around us. Some of those ideas may serve us well. Others may lead us towards lives that look successful from the outside but do not feel meaningful from within.
Running Up That Hill invites us to examine success rather than simply pursue it.
Its central question is personal:
“What does success mean to you?”
The question matters because the answer can influence what we pursue, what we sacrifice, how we measure progress and ultimately how we design our lives.
CONSIDER
Success needs a definition.
Without examining what success means to us, we can spend years pursuing definitions that we never consciously chose.
Achievement and fulfilment are not necessarily the same thing.
Reaching a goal can be worthwhile while still leaving us with questions about meaning, relationships, wellbeing or direction.
The definition can change.
What represented success at one stage of life may no longer fit another. Conscious living allows us to reconsider the measures by which we judge a life well lived.
REFLECT
Think about your own understanding of success.
• When I say that I want to be successful, what do I actually mean?
• Which parts of my definition of success are genuinely mine, and which have I inherited from others?
• If nobody else could see or judge my life, what would I still consider worth pursuing?
You do not need to settle on a permanent definition.
The purpose is to become more conscious of the definition that is currently shaping your choices.
CONTINUE YOUR JOURNEY
For deeper exploration of values, direction and conscious living, explore REFLECTIONS.
If your definition of success is creating an important choice, explore The Decision Matrix.
Design Your Life — A Course in Living