MOVING FROM SUCCESS TO SIGNIFICANCE

Two years ago, I sat in a quiet bar in Singapore, hoping to just disconnect from the world…to just be… to have a quiet drink. It had been an incredibly tough week. My mom was hospitalized due to shingles. She started losing her memory and, unknown to us, at that time, it was the medication that was causing the memory loss. My family and I were in utter shock. We were not prepared for her sudden loss of memory. Fortunately, we acted quickly and got her the medical attention she needed and slowly and surely, by God’s grace, she recovered.

I sat at that bar reflecting on the past week, on how God came through for us and how blessed I was right then right there. It wasn’t quiet for too long as a random stranger struck a conversation with me. He asked me if it was my business that brought me to Singapore. When I told him that my mom was the reason I was in Singapore, the conversation took a philosophical turn. We started talking about the meaning of life, its purpose and the meaning of success. He was clear about his goals in life. He wanted to be successful, to be financially independent and to be the master of his own life. He asked me what my goal was. I shared with him my inspiration to move beyond success. To move from Success to SIGNIFICANCE.

In this technologically advanced era, we are constantly bombarded with the idea of success. The picture that is painted about success is that once you are successful, you have attained happiness…. that success is the end goal and the happy ever after… it grants to you power, joy, wealth and endless possibilities….

Most people equate success with financial success although there is a vast difference between the two.

According to the English dictionary, the definition of success is the accomplishment of an aim or a purpose. It’s about setting a goal, whether it is a goal for the day, e.g.: “I will go to the gym”, or for the year, e.g.: I will take a digital marketing course or for life, e.g.: “I will pursue a career as a private banker.”

Financial success, on the other hand, is about setting a financial goal and achieving that goal.

Financial success can be deemed as a success but not all success is about finance.

But what is the difference between Success and Significance?

Success is about achieving your goal. Significance is about making an impact

Success is about you, Significance is about others.

Success is about building an empire, Significance is about building a legacy.

Some of the most successful businesses in the world are the ones that have added value to the lives of others.

Take Facebook for instance. Mark Zuckerberg wanted to help his friends connect better in college. He ended up revolutionizing the way billions of people now connect all over the world.

With over 2 billion monthly active users, Facebook is now the highest-earning social media platform generating $US 18 billion in revenue and $US 4 billion in profit last year.

GO-JEK was launched in 2010 with the simple idea of making it easier for people to travel or deliver food or things. With over 300 thousand drivers, 80 million download and 3 million transactions a day, it’s estimated value is now $US 4 billion.

I can provide countless examples of the number of companies that became Successful by pursuing Significance.

The reason I started writing and created my blog, called “strongandshine” on Instagram and Facebook is to for that same reason. We all possess a certain skill set, knowledge, network and experience that is unique to us. When we use them to create an impact and to transform lives, success will follow. I use my talent to write and speak publicly to inspire people from all walks of life, at a personal and professional level, to raise their level of awareness, to cultivate their thoughts and talent, and to encourage them to be the best version of who they are.

Whatever your goal is and wherever your business is at, I would like to challenge you to think bigger… to dream in vivid colors…to set impossible goals that scare you…. but one thing I ask of you…DESIRE more than JUST SUCCESS

If you are ready to be move beyond Success to Significance, here are 5 ways to achieve it.

1. Success without Significance is Superficial.

Given my legal background, I have been blessed with an analytical mind. I always like to ask questions. I love to talk to people …whether they are domestic workers or CEO’s. I am constantly curious about their lives and their journey.

What I find interesting is that when I ask some of the most successful people about their success story, their answer is always the same… “It was never about the money”. It was about the vision they had.

The reason I made a lateral move from legal to the business role was for the same reason. I knew that being involved in the business of a company, I can create a bigger impact, add greater value to shareholders, stakeholders and employees. I can groom young leaders and train them to have both, business acumen as well as legal skills.

With my strongandshine, I am doing the same.

So, whatever path you choose, don’t just make it just about you.

2. Tap into your inner power.

Harness that power from within.

You are a work in progress but you are also a masterpiece. Don’t underestimate your ability to excel in what you do, your ability to get to the top, to touch lives to withstand any storm and to rise above it.

Don’t let anyone ever tell you, you aren’t enough, you aren’t smart enough, you don’t have enough experience, you aren’t educated enough.

YOU ARE MORE THAN ENOUGH. No one can undermine you without your consent. Always remember : YOU ARE ENOUGH. PERIOD.

3. Education is a life-long process.

Education isn’t about what we learned in school or university. We are all in the Class of Life. We need to take responsibility to educate ourselves throughout our professional career and throughout our lives. Today, there are countless career options that didn’t exist a decade ago. And as the world evolves, we too must take responsibility to evolve.  We need to constantly be curious, to strive, to learn more than we knew the day before. We never stop learning until we are in our grave. We can learn even from a 5-year-old child if we are open to learning.

I have a 6-year-old niece who lives in Australia. A few months ago, when I visited her, she saw me stretching my hamstrings and asked me what I was doing. When I told her that I was trying to relieve my pain, she said “Oh, do you know why God gives us pain?”. I asked her why and she said, “Because at first it hurts, then after we go through it we become stronger and then it doesn’t hurt anymore”. Dumb founded I asked, “How did you know that?” Very confidently she said, “Oh I knew that since I was 3”. Well I certainly learned something from her that day.

4. Be mindful about who you allow to influence you:

Often times we turn to our family, friends and peers for advice but rarely do we ask ourselves, do we aspire to be like them? Are they qualified enough to advise us? They may have our best interest at heart but that does not equate to sound advice. Seek counsel of the wise. Find a mentor whose values are spiritually, mentally and emotionally aligned with yours and mentors who have the expertise in your field. But at all times, always use your own wisdom.

5. Seek God:

We may all come from different backgrounds, different fields, different religion but what is important is that we must recognize there is a power far greater than ourselves, the Creator of the Universe and the One who holds our future. In all things and at all times, seek God.

Whatever dreams you have for your life, always remember, the ARCHITECT of this world is with you. Seek Him in all you do.

BUILD A LEGACY AND THE EMPIRE WILL FOLLOW.

And that guy at the bar…. as we parted ways he said to me, “I don’t know if this is considered polite in your culture, but I want to tap you on your back…to say well done, to say thank you, you made me re-think about success”.

I politely thanked him and made my way out. In hindsight, I should have thanked him even more so because that is when I became even more inspired to write. This is when “strongandshine” was born. That was when I realized I needed to do more to impact lives.

How about you? What are you created for?