Surviving Success

The tragic careers of many individuals of genius subsequent to being discovered and celebrated by the public, illustrate that there is success, and then there is Success. The former frequently jeopardizes life, while the latter enhances it. True Success enlivens and supports the spirit; it has not to do with isolated attainments, but being successful as a total person, attaining a successful lifestyle that benefits not only yourself but everyone around you. Successful people’s lives are empowered throughout by the context of their accomplishments. In contradistinction, that which the tabloid world calls success often erodes the “successful” person’s health and relationships; spiritual collapse is commonplace in the lives of the rich and famous. But what the world calls success is merely celebrity, and the capacity of celebrity to destroy is documented daily. Famous people constantly succumb to failed marriages, addiction, alcoholism, suicide, or untimely death. If we listed the names of all of the celebrities whose careers were blighted by such tragedies, it would fill a score of pages — the movie stars (Judy Garland, Marilyn Monroe, James Dean); the pop stars (Elvis Presley, Janis Joplin, Jimi Hendrix); the writers (Edgar Allan Poe, Jack London, Ernest Hemingway, F. Scott Fitzgerald) — the list goes on and on. In addition to such notorious examples of the price of celebrity are the uncounted thousands of less famous “successful” lives ruined by drug problems, or the twisting of personality whereby formerly decent folk become vain, cruel, self-centered, and inordinately self-indulgent. It is not just that such people have gotten too much wealth, too much fame, or too much attention, but that these influences distorted their egos and reinforced what might be called the small self instead of the big Self. The small self is the part of us that is vulnerable to flattery; the big Self is an aspect of our more evolved nature, which is humble and grateful for success. The self aligns with weak attractor patterns; the Self is aligned with high power energy fields. Whether it uplifts or destroys us depends not upon success itself, but on how it is integrated into our personalities. Whether we are proud or humble; whether we are egotistic or grateful; whether we deem ourselves better than others because of our talents or consider them a gift for which we are thankful — these are the determining factors. We all know people for whom even a bit of success is corrupting, who become arrogant, officious, and controlling when given a little authority. And we all know people of much greater authority who are cordial, sensitive, and caring. When we come to know the powerful men of the world, captains of industry, presidents of banks, Nobel Prize winners, and members of legendary American families, it is striking to see how many are open, warm, sincere, and view success as a responsibility, noblesse oblige. These are truly successful people, notably courteous and considerate to all; whether visiting potentates or talking to servants, they treat everyone as an equal. The truly successful have no inclination to act arrogantly, because they consider themselves not better but more fortunate than others. They see their position as a whereby formerly decent folk become vain, cruel, self-centered, and inordinately self-indulgent. It is not just that such people have gotten too much wealth, too much fame, or too much attention, but that these influences distorted their egos and reinforced what might be called the small self instead of the big Self. The small self is the part of us that is vulnerable to flattery; the big Self is an aspect of our more evolved nature, which is humble and grateful for success. The self aligns with weak attractor patterns; the Self is aligned with high power energy fields. Whether it uplifts or destroys us depends not upon success itself, but on how it is integrated into our personalities. Whether we are proud or humble; whether we are egotistic or grateful; whether we deem ourselves better than others because of our talents or consider them a gift for which we are thankful — these are the determining factors. We all know people for whom even a bit of success is corrupting, who become arrogant, officious, and controlling when given a little authority. And we all know people of much greater authority who are cordial, sensitive, and caring. When we come to know the powerful men of the world, captains of industry, presidents of banks, Nobel Prize winners, and members of legendary American families, it is striking to see how many are open, warm, sincere, and view success as a responsibility, noblesse oblige. These are truly successful people, notably courteous and considerate to all; whether visiting potentates or talking to servants, they treat everyone as an equal. The truly successful have no inclination to act arrogantly, because they consider themselves not better but more fortunate than others. They see their position as stewardship, a responsibility to exercise their influence for the greatest benefit of all. What allows the truly successful to be so gracious, open, and giving can be explained through our formula of causality: The truly successful identify with the ABC. They realize that they are a channel acted through to create success in the outer world. Inasmuch as they identify with the sources of success, they have no anxiety about losing it. But a person who views his success in the realm of the external, A→B→C, will always be insecure, because its source is thought to be “out there.” Solid confidence comes from the knowledge that the source of success is within. By believing that the source of power lies outside oneself, one becomes powerless and vulnerable and, therefore, defensive and possessive. True success originates from within, independent of external circumstances. The ladder of success seems to have three main steps. Initially, it is what we “have” that counts; status depends upon visible signs of material wealth. As one progresses, status is afforded by what one “does,” rather than what one has. At this level on the ladder, one’s position and activities bring significant social status, but the attraction of social roles loses glamour as one achieves mastery and matures; it is what one has accomplished that is important. Finally, one is concerned only with what one has become as a result of life’s experiences. Such people have a charismatic “presence” that is the outer manifestation of the grace of their inner power. In their company, we feel the effect of the powerful attractor energy patterns with which they are aligned and which they reflect. Success comes as the automatic consequence of aligning one’s life with high-power energy patterns. Why is true success so relatively effortless? It might be likened to the magnetic field created by an electric current running through a wire. The higher the power of the current, the greater the magnetic field that it generates. And the magnetic field itself then influences everything in its presence. There are very few at the top. The world of the mediocre, however, is one of intense competition, and the bottom of the pyramid is crowded. Charismatic winners are sought out; losers have to strive to be accepted. People who are loving, kind, and thoughtful of others have more friends than they can count; success in every area of life is a reflex to those who are aligned with successful patterns. And the capacity to be able to discern the difference between the strong patterns of success and the weak patterns leading to failure is now available to each of us.