Success is a really big topic in our generation. There are a lot of self-made, driven entrepreneurs out there constantly grinding and looking to succeed. Personally, whenever I hear someone is successful, my mind instantly pictures one thing: Dollar signs. I know dollar signs and success go hand-in-hand for a lot of young graduates like myself.
I’ve lived a very good life and I have been very blessed with the opportunities that opened up for me growing up. I’ve gone on trip after trip, I’m healthy, I live in a beautiful home, and my closet is filled with clothes I probably don’t need. My parents have worked extremely hard to provide me with all that they could as a kid and a young adult. I don’t say any of this to brag at all, but I say all of this to ask you, what is the life you’ve lived so far? Are you a little more blessed than the average person? Because a lot of us look for bigger things in life to be able to call ourselves blessed and successful. But there are many different colors of success and blessings, and I want to challenge you to change the lens with which you view those in.
Success and fulfillment can be achieved through other areas of your life. A lot of our opinions of success have to do with perspective. Many of us strive for a bank account spilling with money because that might make us feel and appear successful, but it took reading a book for me to realize there’s so much more to success than making a lot of money and being a big CEO one day.
Why not give back? All my life I’ve had more than enough and it took 232 pages for me to realize, of course, I want more for my life, but I also want to give back, help and desire more for future generations.
I want to help put young women through school one day. Getting into school is only part of it and if you’re a woman, you know firsthand that going through school and finishing school is a lot harder than receiving the acceptance letter in the mail.
I once met a young girl who we will call D. I met her one night as she was serving my friends and me on our famous happy hour margarita outings, something a lot of people often did in our small town school. D was a young immigrant girl serving college students at a Mexican restaurant to make a living for herself and her family. She told me she used to play soccer at her school, but she had to quit because she needed to pick up more hours at work. I talked to her more and asked what she liked to do in her free time and if she was considering going to college at all. Sadly, she answered that hanging out with friends and attending college weren’t in her life plans at the moment because working was her main priority. No 16 year old girl in high school should have to quit her sport because she has to work insane hours to make a living. Unfortunately, this is a reality for a lot of people.
I was saddened and my heart broke at the idea of ever having to go through that since I’ve played soccer since I was 4 years old. There wasn’t much I could do to help her, but I tried researching ways those without citizenship might be able to go to school.
From this point on, I never wanted to be in a position where I couldn’t help a young woman like D. I’m not saying to stop chasing your dreams. I’m saying that while you chase your dreams, don’t forget to give back to other generations.
If attaining money is your main idea of success, that’s completely fine, but in the midst of setting your company’s goals, look for a goal to pursue that doesn’t have to do with adding another zero to your check, or another trophy on your shelf.
Look for a goal that can add to someone else’s life. I guarantee that the success you find in making someone else’s life better will be a lot more fulfilling than the different colors of success you’ve had in mind for yourself.
Caitlin Crosby is the CEO of a multi-million dollar company named The Giving Keys. It all started with her love for a book called The Giving Tree and her passion for getting homeless people off the streets. In her book You are the Key, she goes on to say something that cut deep in me, and I know will cut deep for many of you. Satisfaction can never be found in the things we try to take from this world, but rather in what we have to give to it. This is a powerful lesson for all of us. Have you ever considered the answer to the question, what do you have to give to the world? Sometimes our dreams just need a little tune-up, and now is the time to do so with all that is going on in our world.
Since racism has sadly been one of the major ongoing problems in our society, I think it’s important to do our part and give back where we can. If you haven’t looked around lately, our world is hurting, generations are heartbroken, and racism has only gotten worse. Our world doesn’t need another millionaire or billionaire. It doesn’t need another CEO or high-end grocery store. Our world needs more love, better education, and proper care.
Since many of us are in a similar walk of life where we are figuring out what we want to do for the rest of our lives, don’t forget to include giving back to our world. Success and blessings come in many different colors, some small, some big. Some loud, some quiet.
