What determines if you are successful?

 How do you know if you have what it takes to be successful?

    Think about successful people that you have heard of in your life. What is it about that person that you like so much? What draws you to people that you admire? Is it their personality, their character, what they have been through, their talent, or hard work? To me, I think that it's people's hard work that I'm drawn to. When I hear stories of people that worked very hard to reach a goal or dream, or to become something, I am always in awe of them. I admire that so much, because it purely is their own work and effort that got them to where they are. I love that because it shows that even I, or anyone else, could do what they do if I had the same desire. It means to me, that people can do anything that they put their mind to, if they want it enough. If you have the guts and focus to get it, if you have the passion and belief that what you want is important, then you will succeed. It means that people can develop, change, and become different. People aren't born 'gifted,' always; even great athletes have to work hard and practice.

    There are some that think other aspects of people make them successful too. Luck, character, personality, and other natural born talents play a part. Some people will struggle more in one area than another because of this. Yet, even if you have a great character and personality, sometime you may not be lucky. Some things can happen at random. However, what everyone needs is the ability to work hard. If you don't keep going, if you don't persevere, then you will become less and less motivated to reach your goal. You will not keep becoming a new person. You will revert back to who you are now.

    To discover what your dream is, what your purpose and passion is, there are some questions you might need to ask yourself: What activities have you engaged in that you felt like you lost track of time doing them? What are a few things that you feel strongly about, and from those things, can you convert those passions into helping solve some need? What are your ultimate life goals, that if you don't try to do this, you will regret it when you die? Someone said that to know what your passion is, you need to go after opportunities that come you way, that align with your passions, values, and dreams. Often, life has opportunities come our way that we pass up out of not understanding them, fear, not wanting to change, or seeing them in the wrong way. It helps to have someone or something tilt and shift our perspectives so we can take advantage of those opportunities, because otherwise we often miss them and eventually stop taking any chances at all later in life.