What's Next?

I think it's important to have that question on the tip of my tongue.  I often reflect on things these days, mainly in the morning in solitude, and I think that question is one of the most important one's to ask oneself frequently.    It can become quite easy to rest on your laurels, achievements, accomplishments etc. and eventually fade away.  

I have had the opportunity to speak to with some great people so far on my podcast "Who Should I Be Talking To?" who I would offer are successful individuals so far in life.  There are a few common threads between them, but one is the fact that none seem to have sat and gushed over their accomplishments.  They moved to the base of the next mountain and began to climb.  Jocko Willink, who I have referenced in the past, identifies this in his podcast and books as having a next mission.  It's keeping busy.  It's having a goal or something to strive for that has a bit of challenge and effort required to accomplish.  

There always seems to be a next project for those that we may define as successful.  Those that have enjoyed some success and then rested on it are often called the "one hit wonder'.  Don't get me wrong, who wouldn't want to have that one hit that they could put on the resume, but I would venture to guess not many people know what many of those that hit their peak a single time are doing today.  I wonder what that gangam style dude is doing today?

Here is the other thing that has been confirmed being successful.  Nobody needs to know that you have accomplished all of these things.  Fame is not a good measure of success.  Many many people have a level of fame and that may seem glorious to some but it's much different than successful.  Success may be the fact that one has overcome a smoking habit.  That's a success and that is a great thing, congratulate yourself, be proud of yourself then move on to the next challenge.  To call oneself successful for one single success, then one would have to in the same vein call oneself a failure for one single event as well.  That just doesn't hold true. The Tampa Bay Lightning went through the regular NHL season with the winningest record in history and were swept in the first round a few years ago.  Are the players on that team failures?  Ask one of them and they will likely show you the Stanley Cup ring that they earned the following year.  The regular season was a success, but they learned that year that the regular season was a mountain and the playoffs were a new one.  The next year they scaled both.  

Perhaps one of the most successful people in history is Sir Winston Churchill.  Many people throughout his career dismissed him, but he continued to adapt, continued to take on different challenges and is renowned world wide as a success story.  His words are quoted throughout current literature today.  

The point here is that success can and will likely shine on everyone at some point.  It's crucial that one doesn't just bask in it, but enjoys the moment and asks "What's next"?  That may seem ungrateful for the moment to some, but that is certainly not the gist here.  Definitely enjoy the moment, but let that moment pass.  Remember how it felt, and go after that feeling again with the next challenge.  

Being in the music industry as an independent artist is a constant challenge, so I definitely have that rubics cube that I am still trying to solve.  There has been some success there, and there have certainly been some failures...but I enjoy the game.

I enjoy trying to figure out.... what's next.  

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