This last week Joanne and I spent a few days at Whitestone Inn, one of our favorite get-aways. For some people, it would be too quiet, too remote and too unconnected. For us, it’s just right. We even chose the Mockingbird Suite since it’s in a cottage at the very edge of the property, away from the main buildings, overlooking the lake. Whitestone Inn receives the AAA Four Diamond award each year, won WeddingWire.com’s Bride’s Choice Award this year, and is rated as one of the 10 Most Romantic inns in America. The accommodations and the food are phenomenal – and yet the manager told us that recently a couple showed up, looked at a couple of rooms and then told him the place was just not up to “their standards.”
Oh well – it just reminded me that each of us can decide what “success” looks like. For many years I’ve used the definition of success from Earl 
Nightingale that reads: “the progressive realization of a worthy ideal.” That means a high school sophomore can be “successful,” someone who chooses to live in Haiti to build schools can be “successful,” and a person who is a doctor or a businessperson can identify and live out “success” in their own individual way.
And then on the way home, driving through Pikeville, TN we happened to see this car. I hit the brakes, turned around and snapped a couple pictures. Now there is “success” in a very individualized way. What if you want to drive an elegant car but you’re still very much a redneck? I guess one solution is a lift kit, 4-wheel drive on a Mercedes sedan.
Success comes in many forms. How do you define success in your life?
Success to me is truly living and dying without regret! Chasing all those dreams, making a reality and dreaming some more.
Kimanzi – hey I’ll bet you don’t see many monster Mercedes in Hawaii.
Maybe not Mercedes but there’s a ton of monster cars and trucks. Just as high as the one in the picture.
That’s an awesome picture, Dan! Currently I find success in myself by being able to help provide to have a fun, happy, and loving life with my wife! 🙂 We’ve got our goals and are knocking them down one by one! WOOO!
Bill – sounds great! Success is never achieved alone – and certainly can’t be enjoyed alone.
Many years ago I spotted a Mercedes in Franklin, TN with a gun rack in the back window.
Greetings Dan,
Thank you for the post! We are in the midst of redefining success in my house. Life events can do that for you. My wife and I have held traditional jobs as driven, dedicated employees for many years. That does have benefits but not those which we would currently most appreciate. Our 4 year old grand daughter is one of our greatest pleasures, she resides a great distance from us and we see her 1-2 times each year. We do live during intriguing times. Future success would involve a greater degree of location independence and time freedom. I loved your recent reference to not having to ask permission when you and Michael Hyatt chose to spend some time, taking a little trip, together accompanied by your wives. Oh yes, escape from the brutal northern NY winters would be a bonus, something Kimanzi would appreciate.
Success means I “show up and shine every day in every way in the most important roles of my life.”
BTW, this picture says to me: “You might be a successful redneck if…”