This morning, I listened to an “influencer” talk about success. He raised the question: How do you define success? I paused the podcast and thought about the topic for a few minutes.

I’ve defined many markers for success throughout the years, levels I needed to attain before deeming myself successful. Problem was, as soon as I achieved one marker, I replaced it with another.

In high school, dating the quarterback on the football team and being on the homecoming court made me successful. Check.

I defined success in college by the bylines atop stories I wrote and photos I took, which appeared in the campus and Baton Rouge newspapers. Check.

When I left journalism, I thought I’d be successful if I had a business card to hand out. Check.

Then, I believed carrying a briefcase meant I was a success, so I bought an eel-skin satchel. Check.

I later felt I’d be a success if my work and personal life were so busy I had to live by a calendar. Check.

Unfortunately, none of those things actually made me feel successful.

More recently, I judged business success by numbers, not in dollars earned but in the number of people who joined Life Writers, signed up for classes I offered, attended my free challenges, or participated in the First Tuesday Write and Read.

It didn’t matter if it was a free or paid event. If the offering was well attended, I felt successful. If not, I felt disappointed and discouraged. Uncheck.

I spent a lot of money and invested a great deal of time over the years to learn how to be successful from some of the top business leaders in the country, yet I never attained numbers that translated into success for me.

About a year ago, I decided to stop striving. I gave up doing what the experts said I needed to do to promote my business. I stopped marketing in ways I disliked, namely social media and advertising.

As a sixty-seven-year-old woman, I’m fortunate not to have to work, so I decided only to do what brought me joy—teaching, speaking, vlogging/blogging. That decision is helping me to streamline my work life.

I love helping others write their life stories in classes and the Life Writers membership. I know I’m making a difference in the lives of those I help. I’m fulfilling my purpose, the work I believe I was given to do for my “little piece of the planet,” as my mentor Lezlie Laws calls it.

I still fall into the numbers trap sometimes, but then I look into the eyes of the people before me, and I know I’m successful.

How do you define success today? How did you define it in the past? What makes you feel like a success today? Tell us about your relationship to success.