I'm not much of a philosopher... so I'm not gonna try to fool you or anything. Life is fairly simple. The goal of every being is to be happy. Therefore, you could quite easily perceive someone working for $70,000 a year in a good job that he enjoys to be fairly happy. Assuming he has time to spend with a family, he is even more successful then the CEO of a major corporation who is pulling down, on average $200,000 a year, despite the fact that he has no personal life or friends. Therefore, the journeyman is more succesful than the CEO. Remember, success is getting what you want, happiness is liking it. So, I guess what I'm trying to say is, in a nutshell, if you're happy, you've got a job, and you're alive, you're a very succesful person. That CEO may be richer than you, but you've got happiness, and that, my friends,is all you need.
And you need very little to be happy...
For example... when you're young, a friend, someone to give you a hug when you're upset or sad, and somewhere to go and something to do will suffice.
When you're a bit older, a girlfriend (or boyfriend as the case may be), a job, and a car is nice. Maybe a good college or university.
As you keep going, it becomes harder to stay happy. (I'm only 14, but I think I can look ahead a bit. and dont judge on my age...)
And it also becomes more rewarding when you are happy. I am not happy very often. In fact, I've never experienced true joy. People tell me that it must be odd, but it's not really. I'm thinking that I'm gonna have a happy future. See, I figure life has presets of pain and happiness, one gets too high, another kicks in to compensate. I've experienced virtually only pain so far, so according to my theory, I've got a good life ahead of me.
Now, its a bit early to judge, but, if even one of my dreams comes true, it'll be just that much sweeter after every tragedy. So remember, no matter how bad things get, things are gonna get better, maybe not today, maybe not tommorow, but soon, and I guarantee that it will be one of the best things in your life at the top of that hill.
Trust me on that. I've had a bad life. Ask anyone who knows me. But this year, things are changing for me! Things are getting better! I'm no longer an outcast in school! My grades are going up... And although none of that can bring my friends back, it can make it easier. I've started playing guitar, and I'm getting pretty damned good at basketball. And, although I dont have that good friend to give me a hug whenever I'm sad or upset, I've got people who always remind me, "Hey, Seb, remember the time that university girl asked you out 'cause she thought you were 19?" I smile and say "Yeah, I do. See, the chicks dig tall guys..."
Now, there are some arguments to this.
You dont always get what you give. No, not at all. You get what you deserve. I could work every day of my life doing worthless things and not change anyone's life for the better. I probably don't deserve much, even though I put in a hard days work and I sacrifice a lot. Whereas that guy in a wheelchair across the street might go volounteer down at a kid's shelter or something, and win the lottery. Some good deeds are thankless, that's just life, but eventually, someone's gonna notice, and your gonna catch a break.
That's some more experience... I think... But remember, its good to have dreams, but its even better when they come true. So try hard, do as good as you can, and be kind. You'll get whats coming to you.