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Success. It's easy to recognize it in day-to-day actions. But what about the capitalized version - the one with the sweet smell?

At first the word conjures up images of material comfort or personal recognition. But this can change completely when we're given more information about the person and place their success within a particular context.

If you're told that a theatrical agent has never landed any of his clients a job, you might not think of the person as successful even if an inheritance comes along to provide him with a millionaire lifestyle. At the same time an environmental campaigner who lives modestly and works quietly behind the scenes to curb industrial excesses can still be considered successful. Each time the context changes it alters what we mean by success. A successful policeman is one who catches criminals; a successful criminal is one who doesn't get caught.

These examples return to the basic idea that success is the achievement of a desired outcome. The success of the people above is based on how well they accomplish what they set out to do. But even this definition can run into problems because it relies on pre-determined goals. In other words, you must know what you want to achieve from the outset.

In 1965 a chemist named James M. Schlatter, was working on an ulcer drug when he discovered the artificial sweetener aspartame, later marketed under the trade name Nutrisweet. Most of us would consider him a success despite the fact that sugar substitutes were not in his original plans. So rather than achieving a specific desired' outcome, success might be better thought of as attaining a desirable' outcome because we can accept results we hadn't imagined before as long as they're just as good.

Yet success is more than simply getting something you want or like. It tends to require some form of personal action. Action is not the same as effort. A student who passes a course through hard-studying and one sails through with natural aptitude are equally successful. But compare a slot-machine player who wins $50 with someone who finds a $50 bill on the street. Luck plays a role in both scenarios but we think of the gambler as successful because the money came from an action on his part.

When you get to the broader notion of someone being successful in their field or " a success" (in life), there is an odd factor of timing. If success was merely attaining a certain goal, income or standing, you should only need to hit your target once to count as a

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