I’m looking at my bio and it looks like that of a successful person. Yet my memory of those times is full of messiness, stress and doubt.
We may have failed most of the time on the way to the final success, which means our memory of 90% of that time will be of failure and struggle. Life would have intruded—family problems, mean people, financial worries, health issues, finding out your favorite pants no longer fit. People may have said unsupportive or even hateful things.
If someone took a snapshot of you at a random moment during that process of success, chances are you’d be unshaven in whatever places you shave, hair a mess, looking more like a mug shot than a profile pic.
And yet, you are the picture of success.

The Myth of Seamless Success
When you scroll through your social media feed, it might seem like everyone else leads a life straight out of a magazine. Perfect smiles, impressive titles, and jet-setting lifestyles are what you see. However, if you peek behind the curtain, the so-called ‘success’ is often riddled with stress, messiness, and doubt. In fact, if someone snapped a candid picture of you during the process, it would probably look more like a mug shot than a profile pic!
Failures: The Hidden Ingredients of Success
Success never looks successful while it’s happening. My bio might read like a highlight reel, depicting a series of achievements. Yet, my memories of those times are crowded with countless failures and struggles. For every victory, there are numerous falters—family dramas, financial worries, and health concerns. Don’t even get me started on finding out that my favorite pants no longer fit. Fun times, right?
Life Happens: Embrace the Chaos
Success is often a chaotic and painful journey. People might make snide comments or offer no support at all, deepening your doubts and insecurities. Navigating through such negativity requires resilience and a sense of humor. Yes, even when life feels like it’s going off the rails, maintain that wittiness. It’s a survival tactic, trust me.
The Ironic Picture of Success
If someone could capture a moment during your success journey, you’d likely appear unshaven or disheveled. But isn’t that the real picture of success? It’s messy, sometimes ugly, and often uncomfortable. Despite the unglamorous snapshots, you’re precisely the picture of success. Embrace that image because behind every polished end product lies a lot of screw-ups, doubts, and well, life.