What more is success. . .

. . .than a feeling of self-satisfaction?

I did a launch event for my Bawb’s Raven Feathers Volume IV recently and a little bit more self-satisfaction crept into my heart. I am supported by my readers, believed in by my friends and told often that I am doing very well with this project, but it takes belief in myself to listen and absorb the words that others speak. It takes several hundred (not that I’m counting) glances in the mirror to see the smile that I wear, and to recognize I am still the same BawB I was before this journey started.

We are brought up to believe that success means fancy cars, private jets, and yachts in a secluded cove somewhere, and yes, these things do indicate on some level that success in our endeavors brings more money to buy the toys which may change our expectations. But what is success? To me it means hard work; it might mean arriving at a successful “on budget” completion of a project, or having different workable ideas than someone else has. It means being able to do something you are really good at, and being recognized for it, but recognition doesn’t always mean monetary gains, it can also mean simple positive energy.

To me success means being happy with who I am and what I have done, it means sipping my coffee in the morning, sharing my thoughts and looking at the 4 volumes of this book series I created while I was sitting here sipping my coffee for many mornings past. I believe success comes one page at a time, we tend to write our own life stories, we create the characters that influence us, we live in the environment we have designed for ourselves, we pencil in foreshadowing of ideas yet to happen, and yes, we are the heros of our stories, because we are holding the pen.

I love the thought of being successful in my writing, but it has taken hard work, belief and focus and the best team of book people an author could hope for. It doesn’t stop there, the store owners that proudly display my books on their shelves are very important to me and I respect every one of them, the strangers that hear about and read my books become the energy that makes my smile happen. Success doesn’t stop because you are good at one thing, you need to look into making that one thing better, and you need to continue to grow, continue to believe in you and believe that you can do whatever you set your mind to. Enjoy your future successes.