Goals
If you are goal oriented then you know how important that word "goal" is. If you are not yet goal oriented then maybe this blog post can help inspire a new mindset. How do you define successful living? I think it ultimately depends on what goal a person has. To be successful in my opinion is to be effective at achieving goals.
The goal can be as simple as to wake up the next morning (short term survival goal) or it can be more complicated such as to obtain something from society such as a degree, a career, or any of the potential social rewards which being a member of a society or a community can bring. In order to have goals you have to determine what you care about the most and then set all priorities in life ranked based on that.
A person who for example cares a lot about the future might be motivated to want to create a better world. This inspires many people to want to improve the functioning of governance. This also inspires some people to want to free themselves from oppressive governments. The point being that people want to have a future which is better for themselves and their loved ones than the present.
Self Control may be a myth but if you can then put yourself in the best environment possible to shape your future self
Self Control may be a myth, left up to chance, left up to signals or stimulus in the environment, but this does not mean a person has zero ability to make choices. What I mean is even if we assume there is no such thing as "free will" it does not change that if you can choose your environment then you can choose to put yourself into a position where the rewards and punishments in your environment help you to achieve your goals. If you're in an environment which seems to conspire against you (such as if you're punished for pursuing your goals) then in this case it's a toxic environment.
An example would be if you care a lot about fitness but on every block there is fast food, there are unhealthy processed foods being given to you all the time, there are no places for you to work out, and liquor stores outnumber gyms, in this environment you would be in an environment which is toxic to your goals. In this situation I would say if you can choose a new environment which is supportive of your goals then this is what you can do.
If you are serious about the pursuit of the goal then you'll chip away at it and be willing to sacrifice
Discipline is simply knowing what you have to do to reach your goal and then dedicating yourself to do whatever it takes to achieve it. It could mean working 6 jobs, or it could mean counting every calorie with a calculator, or it could mean tracking your revenue and expenses, or it could determine what clothes you wear, and when you go to sleep, and what you ear, and how you partition your time. In other words discipline in a way makes you act almost like a robot in pursuit of the goal.
- Self control may be a myth, but the environment you are in can be better or worse for your goals. If you can choose your environment then choose the environment which helps you pursue your goals.
- If you decide you are willing to adopt whatever behaviors, personality, or habits that it takes for you to make progress toward your goals then even if you have to grind, and claw your way, you can chip away at the goal over days, months, years, even decades. It's a matter of simply deciding never to stop the pursuit.
- Success is based on how you choose to define it. It depends on what goals you have set and how you track progress. If you never set any goals, and if you don't measure your progress, how can you put yourself on the path to a successful life?
In other words, Successful Living is a lifestyle. It starts with deciding to be goal oriented. Then choosing what is most important for you and your goals in life. Then focusing and prioritizing based on that with total dedication to the pursuit of those goals. Total dedication would mean even on your worst days, you are awake, you invest some time/effort toward the goals.