How Do You Measure Success?

First off, is it really necessary to measure anything? Wouldn’t life be easier if we could simply Drift Away and get lost in rock ‘n roll with Dobie Gray or slip away on the Carefree Highway with Gordon Lightfoot?

Well, I hate to be the voice of reason, but, as much as I absolutely love the songs and lyrics of the 70’s, they really are only lyrics. OK, there may indeed be some temporary escape from the daily grind in order to “soothe your soul,” but we must soon return to reality.

Second off, yes, we live in a world of measuring success and it’s not going away. 

·      In sports, we keep score, wins and losses matter

·      In business, we follow a P&L statement (profit & loss)

·      In school, we take attendance and give grades

·      In church, we count people and money

·      In sales, we would like to beat last month’s total

·      In fundraising, we measure giving, donors and totals

I’m not sure you can avoid measurement as a gauge for success. We measure the height of our kids as they grow, and we watch our weight as we grow! We monitor “likes” on social media to measure popularity and we monitor bank accounts and try to limit debt.

But what is your driving force? What motivates you each day to live and hopefully, to live well? Unfortunately, we most often measure a person’s success by what they do, their income, what car they drive, the size of their house and more “what’s.” In his book, The Old School Advantage, Jim Whiddon challenges us to value a person for WHO they are and not WHAT they do. Which is difficult in a world where we seem to measure everything. But try loving people as individuals, value their worth as someone uniquely created by God. Even if you don’t like them, try to love them. And start with yourself.  

God made you exactly as He designed, a first edition and one of a kind. And He does not make mistakes. Even if you are a fair-skinned, formerly red-headed goofball, like me, don’t compare, don’t criticize and don’t cringe when you look in the mirror. 

You cannot escape measuring and counting, but you can limit comparing. Love yourself for WHO you are, created in the image of God. 

Isn’t it time to live like you are loved? God loves you, so love yourself, love others and live well today. Make it happen.