Respect & recognition

Having money is great; it allows you to buy things, go on nice vacations (if you can find the time), have a maid, and generally helps make life a little more pleasant. But money can't buy respect.

Human beings, this includes businessmen, fundamentally need the recognition of their accomplishments from peers. And it doesn't stop at recognition. It isn't enough for a man to be recognized as good (or great) if those who recognize him don't allow him an equal amount of respect.

Great men = great things

Some of history's most celebrated figures weren't necessarily the richest people. Most US presidents don't even rank as the top million richest people in the country. Compare Bill Clinton to Bill Gates: President Clinton's net worth is less than a rounding error on Mr. Gates' balance sheet.

Yet as president of the United States, he was arguably the most powerful man on earth. The point I'm making is that a man's monetary worth is only one of many aspects that help determine his place in the history books.

Personal satisfaction

Few people will actually realize how relentlessly a man had to work in order to achieve great heights. Thus public recognition and respect are nice, but they don't tell the full story.

Successful men set goals for themselves at a young age. They want to change the world, reshaping and molding it into their vision. The fact that they can actually do so is probably the strongest motivator they have, as well as being their greatest reward.

The greatest reward is the internal satisfaction of a job well done, of beating out your opponents and finishing on top. Secondly, the reward is gaining the respect and recognition of your efforts from your peers. Thirdly, the side effect of all your blood, sweat and tears is that you may well have amassed a staggering fortune, the likes of which has never been seen (which is in itself a by-product of your initial achievement).

And finally, the part that gets logged into the history books, the knowledge that your effort has changed the world in some way.

Now go out there and change the world, make it a better place to live and may the eyes of history look favorably upon your contributions.

(http://www.askmen.com/money/successful/30_success.html)

Ex 1. Here’s an abstract from an Internet discussion on the above issue. Read the statements and express your agreement or disagreement with them.

Mohammad A.

Technology Project Consultant

Success and money

Success is a very important word in life since we are all determined to achieve it. The meaning of success is different for everyone; it varies from person to person, what one is searching for in life. For example, for some people, doing work they get pleasure from is more important than to earn ‘more money’. Success requires passion, determination and wisdom to achieve desired results.

By and large in the social and organizational context, success is measured or associated with wealth/money, for example - the more you earn, the more successful you will be considered. Generally, the motivational idea behind this is, the better you perform/achieve, the more you get (monetary benefits). The premise for this concept might be that everyone is working day in and day out to achieve certain objectives and once they are attained, the best reward for their efforts/contributions is normally considered monetary benefits.

Success in life means money - kindly share your opinions, for or against. Furthermore, what is the meaning of success in your life and how do you evaluate it?

Lisa A. N.

Telephone operator

I see success differently, as fulfilling my potential and using the gifts I enjoy using. The amount of money doesn't figure into it as long as I can support myself.

John P.

Chief Information Officer at CardioMed

There was a study performed a little while ago to explore the correlation between income and happiness. After achieving an annual income of approximately $80,000 it was discovered that happiness with one's life did not increase. A multi-millionaire was just as happy with the things he had as someone making $100,000 a year.

The problem is that society has defined success as wealth. I think that if you sit down and discuss individual definitions of success, the results will overwhelmingly point to freedom. The ability to travel, take large spans of time off, not to worry about medical expenses, tuition, or bills. It is entirely counter-intuitive to the reality of having millions of dollars in the bank. Truth is, when you achieve that kind of monetary success, you have to spend a great deal of time maintaining it. You trade quality of life for vast sums of money.

I suppose it would be nice to have a Lamborghini, but I'd like the option to drive it to somewhere besides the office...

Zeeshan T.

Technical Support Engineer

Hmm, a nice discussion. What I see around is that people always run for money, not success, success comes when they are paid more money. Because in real life money is important, not success.

Farhana Z.

Consultant at Excelerate

really a good discussion. it also depends on a person.

SUCCESS IN LIFE MEANS SIMPLE YOUR SATISFACTION with ENTIRE LIFE, either you have money or not

Jim B.

Entrepreneur Performance Expert

Success to me is personal freedom to live the life I want. If that is not happening I need to re-evaluate my priorities. The first step to success is deciding what freedom means to you. Without that we are in a race with no finish line.

Mustafa K.

Founder and CEO at Boxer Watches

Success in life does NOT mean money to me. Because money without time has no value.

Time is a non-renewable resource. You can't gain more time, but you can always gain back more money.

Therefore success in my life is when I have the time and opportunities to pursue things which make me excited. Of course money is needed and can help greatly, but it certainly isn't the main goal.

Ex 2. What do you consider true success in life? How would things look if you were really successful? That is what this poll about.

What is true success to you personally? Which of the definitions given below appeals to you more? Why? Give your grounds and discuss your views with the groupmates. If necessary, add your own definition of success to the list.

• True success means making lots of money and accumulating vast amounts of wealth.

• True success is simply being happy with everything that you do and what happens to you.

• True success means attaining deep enlightenment and realizing enlightenment.

• True success means finding your soul mate and raising a wonderful family.

• True success is different for each of us and cannot be defined.

• There is no such thing as true success, it is just a fantasy that some people have.

Vote. See, which of the statements appears to be most popular.

Ex 3. Role-play:

Discuss the roles of money and success in people’s life in a TV show. There may be different people invited to participate in this discussion – millionaires, students, teachers, celebrities, psychologists etc.

Ex 4. Write an essay “My idea of success in life”.