by Nancy Browne

Created on: July 30, 2011

Success and happiness seem to go hand in hand. There are those who believe one cannot be happy unless they are successful. I believe that success and happiness is a state of mind. I ponder the question, “What is success, and how does one obtain it?” I believe that people think that once success has been obtained, they will have found happiness. However, success and happiness can mean many different things to different people.

That question is a difficult one to answer; some believe success cannot exist unless one has gone through four years of university, and has successfully come out with a degree. Others believe that success is found only when they have acquired the perfect, high-paying job. While others feel they have succeeded because they have the perfect mate, and a good marriage. The mindset of today’s world, have people believing that unless they have big, beautiful homes, and luxurious cars to drive, as well as enough money to take exotic trips, then they are not successful.

If you don’t have the latest and greatest forms of electronics; a high definition big-screen television, a state of the art blackberry, the best and fastest computer, as well as a laptop, then obviously you are not considered successful, and most likely, you are happy either.   

If you do not have a credit card by the age of eighteen, and a vehicle by the age of twenty, as well as many of these other gadgets, then there must be something seriously wrong with you; you just have not tried hard enough.

It seems ludicrous, but in truth, this is how a great majority of society views success.  It isn’t who you are; it is basically what you have that defines success and happiness.

The expectations to succeed today, is overwhelmingly preposterous. Even children are subjected to it, by peer pressure, environment and society’s attitudes.  They must wear trendy clothes; have computers and flat-screen; MP3 players and the like in order to be considered fashionable.

I refer to a personal story that will provide a bit more substance to the way that society views things. Last December, my brother-in-law dressed as Santa, and listened to the wishes of the boys and girls at the local mall. This being his first time, he was flabbergasted by some of the requests. The little ones were fine, but anyone eight years old and over refused to sit on his lap (it was not cool) so they stood beside him, giving him their lists of things they wanted. For

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