Haven’t you always wanted to be ‘a success’? Yeah, me too! I knew that I wanted to be ‘successful’ even from a young age.

Could I define it? No. But I was confident I would know it when I saw it.

How cute was I?

When I started university, I was sure that success involved fame and recognition. I studied classical music and had my sights set on travelling the world as a performer. Doesn’t that sound glamorous?

By the time I was 28 years old, I had about 20 years of music study under my belt, and a bachelor’s and master’s degree in vocal performance. I was finally being granted a peek behind the curtain into the world I’d been striving toward for so long.

I was living out of a suitcase in a rental in Munich when I realized that my priorities had changed somewhere along the way. This thing that I was on the cusp of achieving was no longer the goal. *Gut punch*

I was doing something I was good at, but it wasn’t my passion; and how success was measured in that world was no longer my measure of success.

This realization rocked my world.

Here’s what happened: I never stopped to re-evaluate my personal definition of success.

I learned – as we all do – that the goals you set for yourself when you’re young can change over time. Truly happy people are great at identifying those priority shifts, and recalibrate their plans based on the new information.

When you stop being totally clear about your definition of success, you’re in danger of someone else’s definition hijacking your work, priorities, and decisions.

I can tell you that the moment we get fuzzy on this definition, we lose focus. We lose our ‘why,’ which can lead to uninspired decision-making, self-sabotage, and burnout.

The first question I ask my coaching clients is: What does success look like for you?

And then we dig in. Because the honest answer to that isn’t a trite one-liner. It includes reflections on relationships, priorities, workload, finances, health, leadership trajectory and status.

We’re not talking abstract stuff. We’re not even talking dollar figures (although money can absolutely be a by-product of success).

Do you want to travel? Build your dream house? Retire early? Buy your parents a cottage? Donate time and money to philanthropic causes? Open a restaurant? Build a craft room? Spend more time with your family? Learn to surf?

Once you’ve clarified your personal definition of success, we can move on to how you define success in your business:

Do you want your business to make a difference? How big do you want it to get? Do you want to be a good boss? If so, what does that look like? Who will your business help, and how will you do it? Will you sell it someday, pass it on to your kids, or do something else entirely?

What do you want your legacy to be?

I’m talking about digging into the things you value – the things that make you want to get up in the morning – and then intentionally crafting your future around those things.

You owe it to yourself to put the stuff that makes you ‘tick’ at the centre of your story and then re-focus your short- and long-term goals around those things. That’s the key to entrepreneurial freedom.

Here’s an exercise to get you started. (Please use the free worksheet template HERE.)

Now, imagine the best possible version of yourself 20 years from now, and use that Best Future You to answer the following questions:

1. How old are you twenty years from now?
2. Where do you live?
3. Are you still working?
4. What are the three most important relationships you have?
5. Are you healthy?
6. What are the five most meaningful things you do in a week?
7. Are you worried about money?
8. How would your best friend describe your top three achievements of the last 20 years?
9. Do you have regrets?
10. Are you happy?

Did you notice that I did not ask you how much money you have?

Why? Because money is a by-product, not an end goal. Your net worth doesn’t mean much if you’re unhappy and alone, with a laundry list of regrets. (I’ve met several people who define success as money and trust me, you do not want to be like them.)

After you’ve answered these questions, we’ll work backward to develop a plan to make Best Future You a reality. For example:

• If you’re healthy and active 20 years from now, what actions can you take now to support that goal?
• Those three important relationships? What can you do right now to help nurture and develop them?
• Those ‘Top Three’ achievements your future BFF is so proud of? How do we break those down into action plans and make them a reality?

Then, we do a similar exercise for your business.

And that’s where the magic happens. When you align your crystal-clear definition of personal success with the rock-solid understanding of success in your business, suddenly, things snap into focus.

You have a plan, my friend.

Better than that: you have a mission.

And people will be drawn to that clarity. It’ll make your relationships deeper, priorities clearer, and your business a place that attracts like-minded people.

Your definition of success will help you learn when to go all-in and when to say no. It’ll guide your decision-making, hiring, and relationships.

And most importantly, it’ll pave the way for Best Future You to become a reality, not just an aspiration.

Clarity. It’s a beautiful thing.