The Essence Of Success

I'll never forget the time I finally learned to ride my little red Western Flyer bicycle without the training wheels. I really didn't want to take them off, but my dad felt I was ready.

So off they came. Wouldn't you know it? He was right. And it felt wonderful! I was free - free as the wind - free as a boy could be. Free as a bird released from a cage.

That was my first big success in life.

Another big success occurred when I became an Eagle Scout. The next one was when I finally got my pilot's license. What a thrill! I still remember the words of my instructor after I completed the final testing: "There'll be joy in Mudville tonight."

So what do these three separate incidents - separated by two decades - have in common? Because certainly the form differed widely in each case. How could you compare riding a bicycle with flying an airplane?

Very different forms. But form is just an illusion, right? That's what some people say. (Me included.)

When you look at the form, every single success stands alone. Unique. Different, at least slightly, from every other success. But when you look beyond the form, to the ESSENCE of success, you see a pattern.

First, I enjoyed access to resources: A bicycle. An airplane. Boy Scout merit badges. And I also had access to more esoteric resources; like will and drive and determination. They don't hand out pilot's licenses down at the corner convenience store. You don't get one by purchasing a winning lottery ticket.

You gotta really want it!

A second characteristic of the essence of success: the fun, the joy, the happiness, the thrill - to one degree or another - that always accompanies success. You just feel good with success.

And thirdly, even though I didn't know it at the time - I used the principles of reality creation to achieve those successes. Every time I succeed, even today - every success I create - big or small - I'm using those principles.

And finally, I was WILLING to attain the success. And once I had it, I felt deserving of it. See, so often we don't attain something because we don't feel we deserve it.

But the issue of deserving doesn't even matter. It doesn't matter if I deserved the Eagle Scout award or not; because I was WILLING to have it. That's the answer to the little voice inside that says 'you don't deserve'. Just be willing instead.

And the willingness must be present for the success to manifest.

When you look closely at any success, you find an essence behind it. An essence more real than the form that manifests out of it. To have more success, greater success, to make success more present in your life, focus on the essence.

Sure, you still have to hammer the nails and lay the groundwork in the physical world. But those nails will hammer a little easier if you hold onto the essence of success as you go about the building: The thrill and happiness and fun. The access to resources. The willingness. And the principles of reality creation.

That's how you bring joy to Mudville tonight.