“The way we define success isn’t working” was the way Arianna Huffington put it in a speech she made a few weeks ago at a conference she called together with Mika Brzezinski, co-host of MSNBC’s Morning Joe. She went on to say, “More, bigger, better — we can’t do that anymore.”
If I didn’t know better I would have thought she was speaking at a religious gathering. What she said goes to the core of the practical application of the message of most world religions. It seems there is a small, nascent movement afoot among women to redefine success that stands over against the typical definition most of us bought into when we were young. Whether they acknowledge it or not, or even know it, this “movement” echoes the words of Jesus who said that life does not consist in the abundance of possessions (Luke 12:15). Of course, in many respects you would never know Jesus said such a thing by the way Christians have sought success in the same way everybody else has. And so have most churches, as if deep down they believe more and bigger are “better.”
But now the consequences of our materialistic view of success are becoming apparent. People feel pushed and pulled, stressed and strewn, all the while running head long over a cliff in the mad pursuit of the American notion of success. The toll on families and individuals is becoming unmanageable, and, for some, unbearable. It is encouraging to learn that some people – even though they themselves are examples of the success they are questioning – are saying enough is enough, that there has to be a different and better way to live.
Yet the vast majority of people are just trying to get by, to make ends meet, to put food on the table and clothes on their children. The more I read about the consequences of the current insanity known as “the Sequester,” the more I realize what a privileged life I am living. With adequate housing, food for three meals a day, money to buy clothes or replace a worn out car, freedom to think about where we might go for our next vacation, I don’t feel much of the impact government cutbacks and a bad economy are causing. If truth be told, millions of Americans and most of the world’s population would love to have the life I do. Put simply, I live a privileged life.
I don’t say this to make myself or anyone else in my situation feel guilty. I have worked hard all my life, and still do. To enjoy the fruits of my own labor is not a bad thing. But I don’t ever want to become so comfortable that I forget or ignore the struggles others are having. I am grateful for the life I have. In fact, I want always to be grateful because gratitude serves us better than guilt. It produces better lives. Indeed, I think one of the reasons I think a lot about people being hurt by government policies and economic downturns is because I know I didn’t get here solely on my own. I had a lot of help from others.
All of us need and get help from others, directly or indirectly. I want to be one of the “others” for someone else. That is why I think any effort to redefine success is a healthy thing. Yes, it is privileged people like Arianna Huffington and Mika Brzezinski – and me – who have the time and money and power and convenience to think about such things, but in the long run a widespread recognition that life is about spirit, about relationships, about giving and not just getting, will benefit everyone, enrich most and not just some.
There is work to be done, then. Changing perceptions of success will be slow, of course, but it has to begin somewhere and sometime. So I’m stepping into a stream of new consciousness that is already flowing, led by women who are speaking ancient truth in fresh ways, and in doing so may save our culture from ultimate meaninglessness.
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