Earlier today I wrote about the tremendous sacrifice that must be made in order to reach a certain level of success. You hear me say it over and over again, but what exactly is success?

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For the majority of us, success is wealth, status, fame, and title... that’s it.

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When you think of someone who’s successful, the first thing we all think is, “Oh, that person must have a ton of money.” But what if we redefined success? Because as we all know, money, fame, and status are not the end all, be all.

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In fact, they’re pretty fleeting. It’s like a dopamine hit. It’s good for a day, a year, or maybe a few, and then you’re on to the next thing.

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So what is real success? Well, that’s up to you. For me, real success is how much freedom I have. The more freedom I have, the more successful I feel. Freedom doesn’t always equate to money. It equates to joy, peace, and the ability to do what I want, whenever I want.

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The next measure of success for me is joy. Having joy is greater than any amount of money, fame, status, or notoriety. Joy is what makes life feel complete. In fact, joy and peace are closely connected.

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Joy is more than just happiness. It’s something that doesn’t fade. Joy is the foundation of a good life, in my opinion. Joy is what gets you up in the morning. It keeps you energized when all hope is lost. It’s the spark that lights up a dark room.

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Although we’ve talked about joy, I think the better question is, “How do you find it?”

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For me, I find joy in the small things: eating good food, working out, exploring, spending time with loved ones, having great conversations, and working on the things I love. Once I realized those are the things that bring me the most joy, I started scheduling my days around them.

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So every day I try to do at least one of those activities, whether that’s eating a good meal, moving my body, or having a meaningful conversation. The main thing I do every day that brings me the most joy might surprise you: it’s my work.

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I love what I do so much, that I'm quite obsessed with it. I wake up every morning wanting to work. I love building Flow Forward Media and Flow Forward Creative ! To me it's like playing a video game. I just don't want to put the controller down. Even when I'm typing this, my heart is racing super fast because I'm so excited to build yet a new piece of content.

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Many people say, “Don’t do what you love. Just do what makes you money.” I strongly urge you not to follow that advice. You can make money doing anything if you do it well enough. So find what you love, dedicate your energy to being the best you can be at it, and I promise you, the money will flow to you.

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Success is what you make of it. Make it tangible. Make it something you can achieve every day. Yes, big goals are important, but it’s the small wins that keep you moving forward when times get tough.

Do what you love.

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Anyway, it’s 12:25 p.m. on a Tuesday. I should probably get back to work now... oh wait. This is my work.

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