By Joanne R. Werntz MD

When I first started out in my career, “success” seemed to be some unattainable alchemy of financial, professional, and personal achievement. In the years since then, I’ve learned that while our accomplishments bring a degree of comfort and satisfaction, true success is much more about how we approached the challenges and opportunities presented to us than any list of achievements we could build up. To put it this way:

1. Success is recognizing your own God-given talents and using them to the best of your ability.Identifying and developing your strengths is the best way to ensure that you achieve your full potential.

2. Success is being able to look back at your life and not regret that you passed up opportunities that were available. Always ask, “What would I do if I were not afraid?” Often, we are our own rate-limiting step.

3. Success is not taking yourself too seriously once you have become successful. Once you get to where you’re going, embrace your achievement with humility, and don’t forget to turn around and offer a helping hand to those who will follow you.