Just because you live in Palo Alto, doesn't mean you have to be the next Steve Jobs.

/ Stanford Shopping Center/

To me, being successful means...
Being in an industry that you as passionate about and excited to be involved in. 

My definition of success has changed over time. 
Growing up in Palo Alto, I associated success with money. Now I associate it with happiness. If you are getting up for a job you hate everyday, where you are uninspired, what is the point? What I do literally gives me butterflies in my stomach. I may not be making money yet, but that's not my first priority. I live for it.

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Santa Barbara, Engineer and Parent, California and Colorado

/ Foothills Park/

To me, being successful means...
Having a positive impact on the world that will live beyond you. And earning enough for family to be comfortable and have fun. 

My definition of success has changed over time. 
Focus has shifted from monetary success to impact on others. But, most who say money matters less probably have plenty.

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Happy To Get The Hell Out of Palo Alto!

/ Mayfield Mall/

To me, being successful means...
Survive and be active

My definition of success has changed over time. 
I don't have to be famous! I don't have to be rich!

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Not afraid to take risks, Writer Builds Career on Mission and Love

/ Eleanor Park/

To me, being successful means...
Living an authentic life where I can be myself, am appreciated for what I can contribute and where I can love and be loved.

My definition of success has changed over time. 
I was concerned about how my career would afford me a certain lifestyle, based on how I was raised in affluent Palo Alto. Now I focus on how I can contribute to a mission I care deeply about and work-life balance.

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From Blah to Badass: One Woman's Journey to Grab Life By the Balls

/ Oren's Hummus/

To me, being successful means...
Pursuing a life that makes me happy. Having balance with my work life, social life, and relationship with myself. Being able to afford my independence.

My definition of success has changed over time. 
I used to think success was based on more tangible identifiers. Such as my degree, my car, my job status, whether I was still asking my mom for money. Now I look at it in a broader more wholistic lens.

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There are many paths to medical school

/ Starbucks/

To me, being successful means...
Pushing myself to learn more every day, to be a better person every day, to enjoy every moment as much as I possibly can. It means not wasting the precious time I have in my life, on making a difference in the world as much as I can.

My definition of success has changed over time. 
When I was in high school I thought there was a rigid path to success. That the only way I could succeed was by getting the right grades, doing the right things and picking the right career. As I got older, I realized that there are many different paths to the same place. I am lucky to have had the opportunities that Palo Alto afforded me, to have gained the work ethic that I did there. But it wasn't my grades that defined me, it was my experiences.

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College sophomore at Northwestern seeking happiness after Palo Alto

/ Philz/

To me, being successful means...
being happy. In high school, I was over-competitive, overstressed, overbooked. And, I felt god awful all of the time because I just felt like I had to be the best. Now that I'm in college, I just want to do things that I'm passionate about and that make me happy. But yet, in doing that, I feel like I'm accomplishing far more than I had in high school, even though in high school I was trying much harder.

My definition of success has changed over time. 
Obviously, my self-worth is no longer defined by my GPA or my college acceptances. It's refreshing. 

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Project Manager, DePaul, Illinois and Germany

/ Cheese House/

To me, being successful means...
Being happy with yourself and seeing as much as the world has to offer as possible.

My definition of success has changed over time. 
I used to think money and status was the most important thing. I realized rich and powerful people were still unhappy with themselves.

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UC Davis, Attorney, California and China

/

To me, being successful means...
Being happy with myself and achieving the goals that I have set out for me.

My definition of success has changed over time. 
The realization that personal success and happiness comes through reflection and being exposed to different things in life in order to identify what is truly important.

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Being my own version of an adult is so much better than high school

/

To me, being successful means...
What a question. For some reason I tend to think of my life now by how my kids are doing, my husband, myself and the state of other relationships I have in my life. When all of those things are hitting I feel successful but when they're not I don't. It seems too close-in and too short term for such a global definition but that's how I measure my life day to day. The bigger, grandiose definitions are wonderful and make for good quotes to remind myself of sometimes but I don't think anyone really stays true to them.   

My definition of success has changed over time. 
In high school it was about grades, sports and college ranking. In college it was grades, social status, job offers. In career it was work reviews, weddings and grad school. As a Mom, it's are my kids happy, having fun and learning. With my husband, right now, it's are we getting along, lol.

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Grateful [high school] Alum

/ Mitchell Park/

To me, being successful means...
Finding meaning and fulfillment in your relationships, your work, and your contributions to the common good.

My definition of success has changed over time. 
I care less about professional "success" and now measure personal success by how much time I have to read, hangout with family and friends, travel, and volunteer.

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Failed Engineer, but Hopeful Self-Starter

/ Kite Hill/

To me, being successful means...
Accomplishing the goals I set out for myself. These change over time, but they more or less always point to building a career in an industry I am interested in and enjoy (so that working won't feel like "work"), having emotionally satisfying and rewarding relationships, and consistently working to improve my life as well as the lives of those around me.

My definition of success has changed over time. 
I used to believe success was numbers-based (grades, scores, salaries, etc). Numbers don't tell a story, though.

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Los Angeles Architect Designer

/

To me, being successful means...
Doing what I love, working hard at it every day, and realizing that I've grown by making mistakes.

My definition of success has changed over time. 
I don't associate success with (quick) fame or money, and have found that by just doing what I've described aa my idea of success, have found that the recognition and rewards are coming and feel that they are deserved.

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Grateful for childhood in Palo Alto; ready to move on

/ Kite Hill/

To me, being successful means...
doing things you love.

My definition of success has changed over time. 
As I reached high school and older, I realized that success, to me, was more about being happy and productive than about wealth or fame.

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BoyzIIMen, U2, Mary J Blige, and Toad the Wet Sprocket

/ Fred's Deli [now closed]/

To me, being successful means...
accepting myself as an imperfect being, feeling strong and energized in my body, and cultivating healthy, mutually respectful relationships.

My definition of success has changed over time. 
It used to be more about quantity, like number of friends, amount paid, amount of influence, how well known I am. Now it's become more about the quality of my work and relationships -- noticing what nourishes me and what drains me, and making decisions about my life accordingly.

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Left for six months and never came back

/ Mitchell Park Library/

To me, being successful means...
Being able to take pride in what you've made of your life.

My definition of success has changed over time. 
Although the core of my own idea of success hasn't changed, it has been a difficult and continuing struggle to keep my sense of accomplishment separate from parental expectations. You'd think at 40 it would be easier to look your parents in the eye and not be sorry for having chosen a path that doesn't involve marrying a person wealthy by inheritance or profession in order to secure a pampered and indolent life for oneself and one's offspring, but...in my experience, parents don't change. I had to build yourself the protective space I needed to keep myself from wishing I had never been born. 

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Hoping my journey to be a part of change has mattered

/ Hobee's in Town & Country [now closed]/

To me, being successful means...
Getting to a place in your life when you offer advice and opinions without looking around the room for confirmation that you gave the right answer.

My definition of success has changed over time. 
Not about money or position but about a confidence that you know you are now the grown up in the room.

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