Today, I want to talk about what everyone wants: success and happiness. No, I'm not trying to give you a philosophy lesson. I'm here to talk about two very simple things. That's it. Just two simple things. Success and the real meaning of happiness. Now of course, everybody wants to be successful. So, what is real success? Ralph Waldo Emerson said his definition of success was to laugh often and to win the respect of intelligent people. A lot of students say that going into a good university is success. Some people say getting into a high position in society is success. What is your definition of success? Becoming a pro gamer? Becoming a CEO of a famous company? Some may be the same, but as you see every person's definition of 'success' is different.
Personal success comes in many different forms and your concept of being a success might not be the same as mine. If you want to be successful in your life, then the very first thing you should do is to take the time to decide exactly what “success” means to you. Never mind what it means to anyone else, what does it mean to you? To some people the concept of being a success is earning a lot of money. In fact society seems to base the whole concept of success primarily by how much money a person earns. I'm often amazed at how many people define success as making (or having) a lot of money. The way I see it, everybody's definition of success can be mapped on a simple grid.
The way a lot of people think, success should be defined as follows:

To my mind, however, a much more sensible definition of success is:

There are two reasons why this definition is better. First, there's no point to being rich if you're not enjoying yourself. Second, you're more likely to get rich if you're happy doing whatever you're doing. Being unhappy, of course, can definitely spur people to action. However, the action should be pointed at trying to become happier–not trying to become richer. Needless to say, if you're struggling to put food in your mouth and keep a roof over your head, none of this applies. When you're just trying to survive, you're not thinking about happiness. Even so, I'd rather be poor and happy than rich and miserable. Of course, all things considered, I'd prefer to be rich and happy rather than poor and happy. However, I believe that it's easier to get rich if you start from a place of being happy–with what you're doing and why you're doing it.
For example, I was taking pure science subjects in my secondary school because my parents said study science subjects will make you a better person and you will become more successful in your future. They want me to be a doctor or engineer because these high-pay jobs are mean to be successful by most people’s standards. But I hate physics, I hate chemistry and I hate biology. I was suffering when I study these subjects. So I just made up my mind to drop science subjects and choose to learn what I really want. I feel myself happier and without those science subjects in my life doesn’t mean that I am not going to be success in other ways.

Many so-called successful people are very unhappy in their personal life. So, we need to ask… Is that what you think of as being a success? Having a personal definition of what success means to you, and then setting goals accordingly, is the only way to make your achievements truly meaningful. Striving to succeed according to somebody else’s standard or definition may win you the admiration of others, but will it bring you a sense of personal accomplishment? If you want to be a success on a level that makes you feel truly satisfied, then I encourage you to take some time right now to write down your personal definition of success. Be specific for each area of your life. Think about what being financially and emotionally successful would feel like. What kind of relationships would represent successful relationships to you? Once you have figured out what is important for you personally you are able to focus on your visions and goals.
Defining success is important, but taking a clear-eyed look at the impact of your definition matters even more. As in most things your intent is important but the results provide the real answers. If helping others through social work is your definition of success, you may make a decent living but you won't get rich... and you must embrace that fact. If you're happy, that’s it. If earning 100 million is your definition of success, you can have a family but it will be almost impossible to spend most of the time with them... and you must embrace that fact. If you're happy, that’s it. So forget traditional definitions of success. Forget what other people think. Ask yourself if you feel happy -- not just at work, not just at home, but overall.
If you are, you're successful. The happier you are the more successful you are. If you aren't happy it's time to rethink how you define success, and start making changes to your professional and personal life that align with that definition, because what you're doing now isn't working for you. And life is way too short for that.
So to conclude everything, I want to say: Do what you want to do and do what you believe is great work. There's always a way. This is true success and true happiness.