What Does Success Mean to You

Image by Gerd Altman courtesy of Pexels.

Most authors I know have a career characterized by highs and lows—just as I’ve had.

Lately, I hear many author friends talking about the lack of sales, the almost nonexistent financial return for all the hours put in writing, publishing, and marketing, and the fears of AI for authors and graphic artists. 

In fact, I’d be willing to bet the hills and valleys are the same for a career in any of the arts.

Maybe that’s true for any self-employed person which probably makes being in the arts and self-employed is a masochistic endeavor.

INSPIRATION FOR THIS POST

A couple of weeks ago, I read a post by my friend Peggy Jaeger that posed the question, “How do you measure success?” I’ve thought about that question a great deal because of the highs and lows in my own career and because I know other authors are going through the same thing.

How can anyone feel successful when he or she is working harder than ever but not earning enough to cover expenses, not to mention making a profit?

I often feel as if I’m in a dying industry—a boat adrift on an ocean filled with AI as threatening as icebergs.

I have good company in this leaky boat because it’s packed with other authors, graphic artists, photographers, and book narrators.

HANGING IN OR BAILING OUT

I’ve known a lot of authors who ended up quitting because they simply had to have a secure source of income. Do I think they’re quitters? Not at all. They’re realists. They embraced the suck of a “real” job, and I admire them tremendously for it.

Only a few hardworking, lucky people can reach the pinnacle of success and live on the income derived form a career in the arts. I think there are more authors now who can do that. What they all have in common is that they’re relatively young, hardworking, skilled, and aren’t intimidated by marketing to social media—and they have the can-do attitude and belief in their ability to succeed.

WHAT SUCCESS MEANS TO ME

Lack of confidence seems rife in the Arts. It seems authors are always questioning the quality of their work, their ability to keep producing, and all the other soul-crushing aspects of their lives.

If your career is floundering—whether that’s a business career or one in the arts—I think you must define what success means to you.

This is what success means to me, and it has nothing to do with money. I’ve had years of zero income and years when I made staggering amounts of money. In both cases, I gave it my all.

I consider myself successful because…

I give the same effort every year.

I work hard and meet a quota every day.

I try to improve my writing and my marketing  skills every year.

I accept that not everyone will love or even like what I write. I try to find the readers who will love what I create.

I don’t get bent out of shape when someone online says something bad about me or my writing. Like the song Garden Party by Rick Nelson says, “You can’t please everyone so you got to please yourself.” 

I love writing, and writing makes me happy.

I believe that I’ll succeed.

TAKEAWAY TRUTH

What does success mean to you? Leave a comment and share your thoughts.

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Joan Reeves aka SlingWords: The Word Slinging Adventures of Joan Reeves