Success: Achieving Self-determined Life Goals with Confidence and Satisfaction

2

Success Through Education

By Sage Klein

Of the many ways to meet the goals one sets for themselves, most people put credence into education (Hein et al.). Whether through a job which only hires applicants with college degrees or through a business relationship formed in college, education creates a pathway towards accomplishing goals. Hillary Rodham Clinton personifies success through education. Clinton’s path from the classroom to the national spotlight represents all that a good education can do.

Hillary Clinton always had an aptitude for academics. In high school, she was inducted into the National Honor Society and graduated in the top 5% of her class. Clinton continued down the path of education: she received a bachelor’s degree in political science from Wellesley College, where she was class president, and became the first student commencement speaker in the history of the college. Afterwards, Clinton attended Yale law school, where she graduated with honors, putting the final pieces in place for an actualized educational experience (“The Education of…”). Clinton’s successes in her career would not have happened if not for her hard work towards an education.

From the abilities she gained at school, Clinton went to work at the Children’s Defense Fund, where she fought to guarantee children the educational opportunities that she had. In fact, providing education to everyone became a leading goal of her career. Clinton worked at Rose Law Firm, where she fought against segregation in schools.

Later, in 2000, Clinton ran for United States Senate, starting her political career. A career which utilizes reelection as means of maintaining employment, a factor unknown to most jobs. Due to name recognition, Clinton skipped the rigor of a budding political career, where budgets and power come small (“Politician”).

Clinton won reelection six years later with 67% of the vote. After a run at the Presidency in 2008, Clinton became Secretary of State under the Obama Administration. As Secretary of State, Clinton negotiated trade deals and ceasefires, and called for the raid which led to the death of Osama bin Laden (Amadeo). Finally, in 2016, Hillary Clinton became the first female nominee for President for a major party, going on to win the popular vote by 2,865,075 votes, 2.1%, despite Russian election meddling and FBI Director James Comey’s unprecedented interference in publicizing information about Clinton’s email server (“Clinton Wins Popular…”; “2016 Presidential Campaign…”). Following Clinton’s nomination for the presidency, the women in the United States ran for office in record levels, so although Clinton did not become President, her impact and legacy, especially in helping women and children, lives on (Sottile; Kurtzleben).

At the root of all of Clinton’s successes lies one thing: Clinton realized the importance of learning and education at a young age, and she took advantage of it.

With such a clear link between education and success, lawmakers in this country must allow all children to have access to good education, just as Clinton has fought for her whole life.

Image by Skidmore

3

Success Through Skill

By Sage Klein

An alternative to education, many find success through refining their skills and talents. Although most do not deny education can lead to great benefits, people often overlook other paths to success. From landscapers to musicians, carpenters to athletes, an overlooked pocket of the population finds success through means outside the realm of education. LeBron James exemplifies non-educational success through not only his awesome basketball skills, but also through his charity work and activism.

Born in the inner city of Akron, Ohio, LeBron Raymone James grew up with nothing. James and his single mother moved over a dozen times by the time he was eight years old. At age nine, to maintain stable housing, James lived with his basketball coach instead of his mother (Manfred). At a young age, James learned that basketball could help him escape his problems. In 1999, St. Vincent-St. Mary High School recruited James to play for their basketball team. James led the team to become the Division III state champions three years in a row. As a high school junior, James appeared on the cover of Sports Illustrated. Although he waited to finish high school before going pro, James knew his talent for basketball would get his family out of their financial troubles, and it did. As of 2017, LeBron James’s net worth stands at 86 million dollars (“LeBron James”). On top of this, after bringing the first ever NBA championship to the Cleveland Cavaliers, James has solidified a name as one of the best, if not the best, basketball players of all time.

Aside his accomplishments in basketball, James maintains the rest of his life very successfully as well.

James married his high school girlfriend in 2013, and they now have three kids. Far from the life his father gave him, James loves his children and spends a lot of time with them. Indeed, James spends a lot of time helping kids growing up in the situations he did: right after joining the NBA, James founded the LeBron James Family Foundation, which helps build schools in inner cities and aids poor families (“LeBron James”)). On top of his charity work, James also spends time on activist causes. James spoke at a rally in Cleveland for presidential candidate Hillary Clinton in 2016, and now frequently criticizes President Donald Trump and Fox News, who once famously told James to “shut up and dribble” (Bieler; Sullivan).

Whether on the court or in the fight for justice, LeBron James always stands his ground. James uses the platform his successes on the basketball court provided as an opportunity to promote the family values he holds dear, which taught him to never give up in the first place.

When assessing success, educators must consider that building upon skills and teaching good values holds just as much value as education, and that all people possess the potential to succeed.

Image by Allison

4

Successful Success Movies

By Sage Klein

A classic family comedy, ​Groundhog Day​ provides meaningful insight on the true meaning of success. In the film, egotistical weatherman Phil Connors relives the same day, Groundhog Day, over and over again, trying to break the cycle. At first, Connors brushes off the Groundhog Day celebrations and the people he meets along the way. Eventually, once he becomes fed up with the same thing, Connors tries to kill himself to break the cycle, and reappears in bed invariably. After an unknown, but presumably large, number of times reliving Groundhog Day, Connors begins to realize the importance of caring for others and finding true happiness, not just a successful career. Connors learns this because of a woman he begins to fall in love with, Rita. At first, his attempts to win her over rely on borderline creepy list-keeping, which keeps me as a viewer entertained, but comes off as shallow. As he changes his mindset, his actions towards Rita become more and more genuine, and they end with an endearing love between the two of them. The overall idea at face value interests me to think about. I wonder what I would do if I had to relive the same day over and over, but the deeper message, that true success comes from self-fulfilment and satisfaction, resonates deeply.

The winner of the Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature, ​Undefeated​ highlights the importance of resilience and teamwork in achieving success (“Undefeated (2011)”). ​Undefeated​ follows the football team of Manassas High School in North Memphis, a team which had not won a playoff game in the 110 year history of the team. This team felt so hopeless, they would often sell themselves as practice teams for other schools. Then things change: a volunteer coach, Bill Courtney, joins the team in hopes to bring the team the playoff win they crave. Coach Courtney leads the team in athletic growth, but also in personal and even academic growth as well. He teaches the team that true growth comes from what a player “does with his failures”, an inspiring way to reinforce the cliche that mistakes spur true growth. The feel good, triumphant tone I as an audience perceived truly conveys how learning from mistakes, never giving up, and having faith in oneself can lead to great success.

Deciding which I prefer to view between these two films proved a tough decision. The natural appeal of Groundhog Day​ as an IMDb top 250 film attracts any cinefile, but an independent documentary with an inspirational story, especially a true story, appeals to me as an audience who likes an underdog story (“Groundhog Day (1993)”). If I had to choose, I prefer ​Groundhog Day ​over ​Undefeated​. An absolute classic film, Groundhog Day​ entertains, inspires, and engages its audience, from the funny parts to the sad parts. The realization that satisfaction with life and your accomplishments stuck with me.

5

Letter to the Editor

Dear Sage, Everyone tells me I am successful because of my wealth, but I don’t feel successful at all. I don’t know why I feel this way. You’d think making as much money as I do every year would make someone successful. I set all these goals for myself: I wanted my boss to promote me, I wanted to make it to my son’s baseball game. I did not accomplish either of those things. I suppose that could contribute to my lack of happiness.

I want to emphasize to aspiring business people that having money does not equate to success. The best education does not equate to success. No matter how successful other people think you appear, you will not feel successful if you do not have confidence and satisfaction in yourself and your accomplishments. I did not realize this.

I never really wanted to become just a well-paid employee in an office. I wanted to become a politician; not that politicians do not make money. State legislators make an average of $81,079 a year, governors make at least $70,000 a year, but can be paid over $150,000 a year in some cases, members of Congress make $174,000 a year, and the President makes $400,000 a year (Murse). As much as I would love to get $400,000 a year, that doesn’t motivate my political ambitions. I just want to go out there and make life better for my family and people like them.

Our nation has 90,107 government units, from school boards to the White House. 2% of United States citizens have run for some office, including me (Motel). I lost. I lost my election and rose the ranks at a business office instead. I make much more than I could have had I won my election, but I feel all the more empty. While I could have debated and reasoned with my political opponents why we need to fund education for our kids, here I work, late at the office, always away so I do not even see my kids. I want to see anyone tell me writing a bill would bore them, and tell me that a typical job in a cubicle would suffice instead.

I suppose I want to emphasize that giving up on your dreams will harm your so-called success a lot more than making less money would. Success does not come easy. You will encounter failures. Do not let them break you like I did. I want to scream that into the universe, and I guess this letter does just that.

When we all die, money means nothing. Nothing has meaning except whatever memories we can look back on and miss.

From, Anonymous

6

Interviewing Joanne Draus Klein Define success.

Finding your own definition of happiness your own way.

Do you think you are successful?

Given that I raised three triplets who are great kids, I consider that a wonderful success.

I notice you left out any mention of a job or money in your response to my last question. Why is that?

Because I postponed my twenty year career in journalism in order to have you and raise you on my own.

So my definition of happiness changed when that changed. But I loved my career which is why I put off having you until I was 40, and though I did so many of the things I hoped to do as a journalist, I still wouldn’t trade it for being the mom of you three kids.

Do you believe that you accomplished the goals you had for yourself in life?

As a teenager I thought I’d be going off to California and writing for ​Rolling Stone​, so that never happened, but I was amazed when I got the Cleveland version of that job as assistant editor of ​Scene Magazine straight out of college. So I had, essentially, the same job, only in the town that I grew up in. So many of the goals I had when I thought I would write for ​Rolling Stone​ actually were met on a local basis. And then, when I got to freelance rock review for the Akron Beacon Journal for eight years, those goals were met yet again.

Are you satisfied with how your career and life went?

I wouldn't have changed anything about my career, and hopefully I'll be able to pick it back up in some form again, but I also would never change sacrificing that career to be a triplet mom.

Is there anything you believe you could have done to be more successful?

How can one be more successful than having three wonderful children?

What about wealth, how does that play into success?

Once you have enough money to be comfortable, anything beyond that can become a detriment to success. The more money you have, the more problems you may have with it.

What do you believe is most important to become successful?

Like the poster in Mr. Dole’s classroom said, “Your I will is more important than your IQ”. Education can certainly open a lot of doors, but once you're in those doors, you'll be right back out again if you don’t have something genuine to contribute.

What needs to change about the way society views success?

It shouldn't be about being rich and famous, because countless stories prove that the rich and famous can become as depressed and unhappy if not more so as everyone else. It’s about true self satisfaction, whatever that may be.

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Allison, Keith. ​LeBron James. Washington Wizards v/s Cleveland Cavaliers November 18, 2009 at Verizon Center in Washington, D.C.​ Washington, D.C., 18 Nov. 2009.

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Bieler, Des. “LeBron James Introduces 'President Hillary Clinton' at Cleveland Rally.” ​The Washington Post​, WP Company, 6 Nov. 2016, www.washingtonpost.com/news/early-lead/wp/2016/11/06/lebron-james-introduces-president-hillary-clint on-at-cleveland-rally/?noredirect=on&utm_term=.d3d16cd9bc20.

“Clinton Wins Popular Vote by Nearly 2.9 Million.” ​U.S. ELECTIONS​, 22 Dec. 2016, elections.ap.org/content/clinton-wins-popular-vote-nearly-29-million.

Davis, Simon. ​Bill Gates July 2014​. 29 July 2014.

“The Education of Hillary Clinton.” ​Vista College​, 20 Sept. 2016, www.vistacollege.edu/blog/resources/the-education-of-hillary-clinton/.

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Kommunikáció, Lwp. ​Az Univerzum, Ahogy Stephen Hawking Látja​. Cambridge, 8 Jan. 2015.

Kurtzleben, Danielle. “More Than Twice As Many Women Are Running For Congress In 2018 Compared With 2016.” ​NPR​, NPR, 20 Feb. 2018, www.npr.org/2018/02/20/585542531/more-than-twice-as-many-women-are-running-for-congress-in-2018 -compared-to-2016.

“LeBron James.” ​Biography.com​, A&E Networks Television, 24 Jan. 2018, www.biography.com/people/lebron-james-399748.

Manfred, Tony. “LeBron James Really Did Grow Up In Inner City Poverty.” ​Business Insider​, Business Insider, 21 June 2013, www.businessinsider.com/lebron-james-life-story-2013-6.

Motel, Seth. “Who Runs for Office? A Profile of the 2%.” ​Pew Research Center​, 3 Sept. 2014, www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2014/09/03/who-runs-for-office-a-profile-of-the-2/.

Murse, Tom. “Here's Every Politician's Salary From the State House to White House.” ​ThoughtCo​, www.thoughtco.com/how-much-do-politicians-earn-3367616.

Peabody Awards. ​Jordan Peele - Keegan-Michael Key at the 73rd Annual Peabody Awards Ceremony.​ 19 May 2014.

“Politician.” ​Politician Careers | The Princeton Review​, www.princetonreview.com/careers/123/politician.

Schwichtenberg, Frank. ​Chris Martin - Global Citizen Festival 2017​. Hamburg, 6 July 2017.

Skidmore, Gage. Tempe, AZ, 2 Nov. 2016.

Sottile, Alexis. “Meet the Women Inspired to Run for Office After the 2016 Election.” ​Rolling Stone​, Rolling Stone, 5 Sept. 2017, www.rollingstone.com/politics/features/meet-the-women-inspired-to-run-for-office-after-the-election-w50 0457.

Sullivan, Emily. “Laura Ingraham Told LeBron James To Shut Up And Dribble; He Went To The Hoop.” ​NPR​, NPR, 19 Feb. 2018, www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2018/02/19/587097707/laura-ingraham-told-lebron-james-to-shutup-a nd-dribble-he-went-to-the-hoop.

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Yohe, Matthew. ​Steve Jobs Headshot 2010​. 8 June 2010.

As a 17 year old junior at Chagrin Falls High School, I think people would describe me as successful. Born on March 27, 2001, my triplet siblings, Rory and Nova, and I lived a fairly privileged childhood, growing up in Chagrin Falls, Ohio. When I was young, two things became apparent: I had an aptitude for art, and I interested myself in politics. As a toddler, I loved to draw pictures of and paint my family members, characters from TV shows, and other subjects. In 2004, after my mom told Rory, Nova, and I that Republican George W. Bush beat Democrat John Kerry in the race for President of the United States, I actually cried. That story now makes me laugh. It truly exemplifies my political interests now.

In elementary school, my siblings and I received a video camera as a present, and that, along with my mom’s constantly showing us some of the greatest movies ever made, started the love of filmmaking Rory and I have today.

The improvised, crazy, fun movies we made as kids evolved as we grew. In 7th grade, Rory and I founded Klein Studios, a YouTube channel where we posted our short films, starting with Chagrin Falls Middle School Film Festival winning ​Tiger-Man​, and followed by many more great movies, including our most successful film, ​No Caller ID​, which now has over 10,000 views on YouTube. Although the pressures of school keep us from filming more often, nothing satisfies me more than getting out there with friends and making a good, fun movie.

Although filmmaking proves difficult in high school, my other beloved hobby, politics, works a lot easier in a busy schedule. I volunteered for Hillary Clinton’s campaign for president, a memory I will cherish forever.

Something as simple as walking around Chagrin Falls with Rory, knocking doors and getting out the vote, holds such value in my memories. I believe that really demonstrates true success, not even getting paid at all, but still loving it.

In 2017, I ran for class president on a platform of trying to make Chagrin Falls High School switch to solar panels for their energy needs. This proposal, although enticing, seems highly unlikely when coming from nothing more than a candidate for class president, yet since my close win against my opponent, I have met with the Director of Operations of the Chagrin Falls High School multiple times regarding the topic, making the chances of a change better than ever.

Outside of my volunteer work and student government experiences, I spend a lot of time reading the news, debating politics with whoever will engage me, and helping other activist groups, like the Chagrin Falls branch of the National School Walkout. It comes down to the fact that helping people makes me happy, and it makes me feel good about myself.