At all of my graduations – kindergarten, fifth grade, eighth grade, twelfth grade – I remember being happy and proud – as I imagine we all have been – at what I had just accomplished. But underneath all of that pride and joy was a little sadness because I felt I had to start all over again and was approaching uncharted territory. Entering a new school or chapter I’d no longer be the big fish in the little pond, but the little fish in a big pond. But as I’ve gotten older, being granted wisdom by God, I no longer see it as “starting over” because, in actuality, it isn’t starting from the same place, but starting from a new place that demands different things from me entirely. It feels as though whenever we are met with success, it comes with a challenge of our mentality. We can be tested with fear of what’s next (as I was), or maybe we face a test on our pride. Bottom line is, new success almost always calls for a new mindset.
Of course – success is a subjective term. The definition differs from person to person. However, there are some common denominators in our definitions. And because of this, there are common tips we can all use on how to meet success with the right mindset.
Denzel Washington has proven himself to be one of the greatest actors of all time, and I’d say he’s made a reputation of being a humble and benevolent man. There is a compilation video I saw on Instagram of him speaking at different venues, all around the theme of success. The first thing he said was “Put God first”, and that all that he has accomplished was because of how God had been by his side throughout the years. As noted earlier, sometimes along with success, comes the test on someone’s pride. So how do we remain humble after we succeed? Well – that’s the answer to that question – we remember God first because it is by His grace and with His gifts that we have gotten to where we are now. There is a propensity when people accomplish something – especially after they’ve received praise from other people – for them to forget about how they got to the level they’re at. Don’t be forgetful – give honor where honor is due. It’s hard to not take the glory for yourself sometimes – but remembering how much God and your loved ones supported you on the road to your success is a sure-fire way to remain humble.
Earlier, I spoke about the ritual of graduation – how often times it can feel as though we are starting over when we are really soaring to a new height. After we have accomplished something, it’s also important to be excited to continue on your new level because success, however you define it, is a cycle. This means it is never-ending. There never ceases to be things for us to work on and toward. After fifth grade came middle school, then high school – now it’s college, then next? – another journey at hand. Ultimately, success is what we all want to achieve – however, if we are not in our right mind, our celebration parades can be cut short thanks to our ego or our fear of the future. Keep going, and expect things to be difficult. Remember to thank God, remember to stay consistent and soberly-minded, and ultimately remember that you have what it takes to get to the next level just like you had what it took to succeed over your past levels.
