What Can Success in a Career Look Like?

By Danielle Birchard

Success can mean many things to different people. It could mean acquiring a degree, having a great family, traveling to your bucket list locations, buying that first house, and so many other things. Defining success within a career also looks different for each person. Here are some of the things that I define as success in my own career. These things do not define success for everyone, these are simply my own findings.

Working at a company where the mission is clearly laid out and you can see how each member of the team is working to the same end is very important to me. Each person plays their own role in a company, but we all know the direction of the company. Knowing that goal and knowing my part in attaining it, for me, is success. This mentality flows down from the C-suite, department heads, team leads, managers, and to every person in the company. Working with a great team of people that are willing to help each other and get the job done is also important. When you are able to create friendships along with professional relationships at work, this is vital, and a successful company has this.

I have a certain amount of flexibility in my job. Life happens, situations arise in your life and sometimes your priorities change. There is a balance that has to happen, but a company that acknowledges both its own priorities and the personal priorities of its employees has found success. Many people find this just as important as the paycheck they take home. This idea of flexibility goes for changes in individual work goals, as well. A company that is willing and able to help its employees increase their knowledge and provide resources that will help the employee perform their job better, that is another definition of success. Flexibility is something that most people look for in a job today, but to be able to say that you have actually found it, that is rare indeed.

A final sign of success is the ability to translate the good parts of your job into your personal life as well. No job or company is perfect, but hopefully you are constantly learning in your role. Things like successful communication, knowing when to say yes and no, a desire to learn, a willingness to take on more beneficial opportunities, a strive to improve, higher levels of motivation, embracing failure and learning from it. These are all things that a well-balanced and accomplished career should give you, and to me, the ability to translate those things into your personal life means that you found success in your career.