By Joe Tokpoima
Success per se is indefinable. It means many things to many people. It can be an elusive concept. Some posit that success spoils people by making them vain, egotistic and self-complacent. You may counter that opinion by positioning yourself as humble, altruistic and enterprising. That is good for you. What we are about to consider even perfunctorily is the holistic view of a person’s life to its end, Confucius said “the superior man makes the difficulty to be overcome his first interest. Success comes only later”. Success rarely brings satisfaction. In this world there are only two ways of getting on either by one’s own industry or by the imbecility of others. Talents or natural endowments come into play here about which only the vain person would boast. It is not of one’s own making. It is received and not by any inherited meritocracy. The school boy or girl or even the college graduate deluded by naivety has uppermost in his or her mind wealth with which he/she would acquire wine or other stuff, women or men as the case may be and song. His/her traditional target to this end had been medicine or law and rarely engineering until recent times when there has been a paradigm shift towards the more alluring political arena. It is natural for them to think that money is the be all and end all of life. In the process of this acquisition they inflict themselves with many wounds. There is unnecessary strife sometimes leading to a dead end.
Flashing back on historical figures like the polygamous King Solomon (not a bright example for Christians) and the exemplary Abraham come to mind depending on which you are impressed by. In contemporary times there have been personalities like Saddam Hassein and Colonel Ghadaffi who had sad ends after what some describe as successful lives depending on their perspectives. Living with us are folks like Bill Gates and AlikoDangote who can be role models. Others have risen from zero to hero like Messi, Ronaldo and others. In passing it should be noted that success is not limited to strictlyintellectual activity though sports too entails a modicum of intellectual activity. Like President Bio said the other day the successful way is not always to rely on employment by government or the private sector. It is expedient sometimes to take the initiative of creating self-emplohment which will benefit themselves and the community at large.
On how bitter it is to look at happiness arising from success through another man’s eye you may not be willing to go through the circuitous route by which he/she arrived at the destination. To be born in a slum does not argue that one would end up to be a life-long beggar. Many a slum dweller has risen to be a prominent citizen. A person who boasts of his/her illustrious ancestors is like a potato. The better part of that person is underground.
Success has ruined many a man, which is why Ben Johnson said success has made me wanton. To this end Bill Gates was heard saying on the BBC that he would leave a legacy of $ 1million to each of his children. He did not state why or I may not have heard. It is however logical to conclude that he does not want them to fall into Ben Johnson’s syndrome of wantonness. Himself did not inherit wealth but resourcefulness. If you would succeed however you must not be too generous or you would soon be reduced to the position of the recipients. The Bible states in 2 Thessalonians 3:10 “For even when we were with you, we gave you this command. If anyone will not work, let him not eat”.
Success is inextricably linked with happiness as the final goal. Let us note that we never enjoy perfect happiness. The hymn writer states; “There are heights of joy that I may not reach till I rest in peace with thee”. So joy and by extension, success is never fully evaluated until post mortem. Honor and shame from no condition rise. Act well your part there all the honor lies.
At our own door steps we have citizens whom we consider successful like Dr. Davidson Nicol or Bailor Barrie. Like the forgoing stated above it may depend on your own perspective on success namely through education or money making. Most of our youths are magnetized to the latter. Never call a man happy (successful) until he dies. That’s the time for evaluation. 2 Timothy4:7 states: “I have kept the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. “Caesar said: Veni, VidiVici (I came, I saw, I conquered). A true Christian can only be successful if he/she gains eternal life in heaven. Are you successful in life?
Go and answer the question.
Copyright –Published in Expo Times News on Monday, January 29th, 2024 (ExpoTimes News – Expo Media Group (expomediasl.com)
