To laugh often and much;
To win the respect of intelligent people and the affection of children;
To earn the appreciation of honest critics and endure the betrayal of false friends;
To appreciate beauty, to find the best in others;
To leave the world a bit better, whether by a healthy child, a garden patch or a redeemed social condition;
To know even one life has breathed easier because you have lived.
This is to have succeeded.
--- attributed to Ralph Waldo Emersonhttp://www.transcendentalists.com/success.htm
//en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:RWEmerson.jpg
Ralph Waldo Emerson is well known in the philosophy world and had something to say about success in life. He had just a couple of different things that you need to accomplish to become successful.
"To Laugh often and much;"
This line is pretty simple. Throughout your life you should have a good time and as long as you laugh a lot you are partially a success. I agree with this statement because in order to be successful in my mind I have to have a good time doing whatever I do in my life.
"To win the respect of intelligent people and the affection of children;"
This line isn't as straightforward as the other lines but it is not that hard to understand. The first half of the sentence makes perfect sense to me. Being respected by intelligent people is a good way to measure success because if someone is considered intelligent they are already successful in their education. I think the affection of children is important because they will want to be successful like you and live a fulfilling life.
"To earn the appreciation of honest critics and endure the betrayal of false friends;"
The honest critics will be the ones who tell you when you have failed but praise you when you succeed. If they appreciate you they mean it. Their approval is a true representation as to whether or not you are a success. Being able to endure the betrayal of false friends is important because not everyone you encounter in real life will be trustworthy and will stab you in the back. You have to learn to shrug that off and keep moving on your road to success.
"To appreciate beauty, to find the best in others;"
I think this line simply means to find the little things in life. We focus to much on the big picture and if we decided to focus on the small little things we will live a happier life. Emerson's view of success is partially the honors and professional approval but also just being happy. This line focuses primarily on the happiness part of his view of success.
"To leave the world a bit better, whether by a healthy child, a garden patch or a redeemed social condition;"
Leaving a good mark on this world will not only make you successful but is pushing the future of everyone in the successful direction. This line suggests that if you leave a good mark on the world it is a cycle that will be repeated and everyone will leave a good mark on the world to make it a better place for everyone.
"To know even one life has breathed easier because you have lived."
He implies here that you can not be selfish while trying to be successful. Your goals and path to that goal should have others in mind and how it affects them and at least one person should be helped while on your path to a successful life.
Emerson is well respected in history and I can say that I agree with his views of success. These simple rules give you some guidelines and goals to work towards while on your path to success. Some of the lines could have some more explanation to further express what he means. Do his views represent doing good for others in ones life or to be successful in your career/professional life or a mix of both? Personally I think this quote is more focused on doing good for others instead of having a successful career. Emerson was more focused on the happiness of life versus success and fame that a successful professional life can bring.
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