Word-Of-the-Week #2022: Self-worth
March 12, 2026 by Susan Clarke · Comments Off on Word-Of-the-Week #2022: Self-worth
Self-worth – the sense of one’s own value or worth as a person; self-esteem; self-respect.
Do you recognize and acknowledge the things you do well? Are you focused on making and keeping close friendships?
This week features the final part of “If You’ve Already Accomplished These 11 Things, You’re More Successful Than An Average Person” by Alexandra Blogier at YourTango.com
To Recap: Everyone defines success differently. Some people measure success by career achievements, money, or material comfort, while others base it on strong relationships, emotional health, and how fulfilled they feel on a day-to-day basis. Success is personal, but that doesn’t mean it’s impossible to recognize. In fact, there are certain life accomplishments and internal shifts that quietly separate truly successful people from everyone else.
- You show up as your authentic self
- You commit to lifelong learning
- You set goals that actually matter to you
- You approach challenges as opportunities to grow
- You make mistakes and learn from them
- You hold yourself accountable
- You build and maintain a support network
- You communicate with intention and clarity
- You make time for fun and joy
If you’ve taken time out of your daily routine just to have fun, you’re more successful than an average person. Having fun is a simple practice that will make you feel good. Having fun boosts your mood and keeps your mental health balanced.
In his book, “The Fun Habit: How The Disciplined Pursuit of Joy And Wonder Can Change Your Life,” psychologist Mike Rucker writes, “Happiness is a state of mind. “But fun is something you can do. It doesn’t require education, money, or power. All it requires is intentionality.”
Rucker shares that fun requires being active and intentional. Fun can involve other people or be done alone, but it’s something you choose for yourself, and it gives you a sense of awe and wonder that goes beyond your ordinary experience.
Your version of fun might involve blowing bubbles while listening to disco music. It might be taking a walk and leaving your phone at home. Whatever your definition of fun is, seeking it out regularly makes you happier, healthier, and more successful than an average person.
- You prioritize close friendships
If you’ve focused on making and keeping close friendships, you’re more successful than an average person. Staying socially connected is the antidote to loneliness, as psychologist Guy Winch explained in a conversation with YourTango CEO Andrea Miller on the “Getting Open” podcast.
Winch noted that loneliness can trick us into feeling more alone than we actually are.
“That’s what loneliness does — It convinces us that the people who we have, who are dear to us, who care about us, don’t care as much. And then it makes us reluctant to reach out, and that reinforces the loneliness, and it’s a very difficult spiral,” he said.
Winch shared that the quality of relationships is more important than the quantity. In the end, it doesn’t really matter if you don’t fit in with the popular kids or if you have only a few friends. If the people in your life see who you are and love you for that, then you’re more successful than an average person.
- You separate your achievements from your self-worth
If you’ve drawn a line between what you’ve achieved and your sense of self-worth, and you’ve accepted that you’re worthy regardless of those achievements, then you’re more successful than an average person.
Psychotherapist Susan Saint-Welch pointed out that having a strong sense of self-worth exists at the core of living your purpose and being your truest self.
“Feeling good about yourself is different than just being happy,” she explained. “It means you recognize something you do well or a quality that makes you feel like a good person. It is a sense of feeling worthy, that you matter and can make a difference in this world.”
You might drive a fancy car or have a powerful job, but you know that your worth doesn’t depend on those things, which is why you’re more successful than an average person.
This week’s focus is on your self-worth. Would you agree that the quality of your relationships is more important than the quantity? What is your definition of FUN? And are you making time for FUN and JOY?
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Word-Of-the-Week #2021: Accountable
March 5, 2026 by Susan Clarke · Comments Off on Word-Of-the-Week #2021: Accountable
Accountable – responsible for the outcome or decision that you make.
Do you take responsibility for problems that you may have created? Do you communicate directly and clearly, with honest intention?
This week features the third part of “If You’ve Already Accomplished These 11 Things, You’re More Successful Than An Average Person” by Alexandra Blogier at YourTango.com
To Recap: Everyone defines success differently. Some people measure success by career achievements, money, or material comfort, while others base it on strong relationships, emotional health, and how fulfilled they feel on a day-to-day basis. Success is personal, but that doesn’t mean it’s impossible to recognize. In fact, there are certain life accomplishments and internal shifts that quietly separate truly successful people from everyone else.
- You show up as your authentic self
- You commit to lifelong learning
- You set goals that actually matter to you
- You approach challenges as opportunities to grow
- You make mistakes and learn from them
- You hold yourself accountable
Holding yourself accountable is an accomplishment that shows you’re more successful than an average person. Most people are terrified to take responsibility for things they’ve done wrong, or things they haven’t done at all. Holding yourself accountable is a sign of success because it shows you’re willing to change.
As psychotherapist F. Diane Barth explains, “Taking responsibility does not mean never making a mistake,” but rather, it means acknowledging your actions and working to show up differently next time, which can positively impact your sense of self.
“Knowing that we can make changes gives us a sense of agency, a feeling of power over what we do and don’t do, and a sense of competence,” Barth concludes.
- You build and maintain a support network
If you’ve built a support network of people who care for you and who you care for in return, you’re more successful than an average person. Investing in your relationships is an indicator of personal success. Research shows that people with strong social connections tend to be happier and healthier, with close relationships boosting life satisfaction and well-being.
Putting in the time and effort to get to know people who will show up when you need support means you’re successful, because you’re harnessing the power of your community. Having a support network means giving when you can give and receiving when you’re in need, both of which are needed.
If you have people in your life who push you to grow, who inspire you, and love you as you are, you’re more successful than an average person.
- You communicate with intention and clarity
If you’re always working to communicate directly and clearly, with honest intention, you’re more successful than an average person. You fully understand that communication is the key to having healthy relationships, but you also know that it’s often harder than it seems to communicate with clarity.
Professor Yvonne K. Fulbright reveals that “the trick is discovering how to express yourself amid the sea of emotions that can quickly submerge your best efforts.” She explains that a major part of strong communication isn’t about what you say, but rather, how you listen.
“Communication needs to be a two-way street,” she shares. “If you expect your partner to hear you out, then you need to make yourself vulnerable to any reaction, especially the need to reflect back on what you’ve just said.”
Staying present in a conversation is as important as taking the space you need to process what’s been said, and expressing gratitude for the connection you have with your partner will always raise your communication efforts to a higher vibration.
This week’s focus is on being accountable. Are you willing to change? Have you built a support network of people who care for you and who you care for in return? Is your communication a two-way street?
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Word-Of-the-Week #2020: Accomplished
February 26, 2026 by Susan Clarke · Comments Off on Word-Of-the-Week #2020: Accomplished
Accomplished – successfully completed; achieved.
Do you have confidence in yourself to set and achieve goals? Are you able to learn from your mistakes and keep moving forward?
This week features the second part of “If You’ve Already Accomplished These 11 Things, You’re More Successful Than An Average Person” by Alexandra Blogier at YourTango.com
To Recap: Everyone defines success differently. Some people measure success by career achievements, money, or material comfort, while others base it on strong relationships, emotional health, and how fulfilled they feel on a day-to-day basis. Success is personal, but that doesn’t mean it’s impossible to recognize. In fact, there are certain life accomplishments and internal shifts that quietly separate truly successful people from everyone else.
- You show up as your authentic self
- You commit to lifelong learning
- You set goals that actually matter to you
If you’ve established purposeful goals and worked toward achieving them, you’re more successful than an average person. Your goals shouldn’t be so huge that you can’t actually reach them. Goals should be practical and accessible, while pushing you to do your best work.
Coaches Orna and Matthew Walters share that the key to reaching your goals is building up confidence and believing you can get there, which can be done by adjusting your mindset.
“How you think about accomplishing your goals is just as important as the series of planned actions to achieve a goal,” they explain, noting that the first step to being confident and achieving your goals is to change your inner dialogue.
“How you speak to yourself has a direct effect on how you feel about yourself,” they reveal. You have to pay attention to how you speak to yourself and “notice if you’re kind and compassionate towards yourself or if you’re critical and judgmental.”
“In order to boost your confidence, speak to yourself in a way that empowers you to keep moving forward,” they advise.
“You’re only trying to be better today than you were yesterday,” they conclude. “Track your progress, let your efforts count, and continue to foster an inner dialogue that’s supportive.”
- You approach challenges as opportunities to grow
If you’ve shifted how you view challenges, you’re more successful than an average person. It’s easy to look at hardships as roadblocks that keep you from reaching your full potential. Yet the truth is that everyone’s life journey has its own challenges; it’s how you approach them that makes a difference.
Believing that you have the power to push through challenges requires shifting your mindset. As coach Alex Mathers explains, “The secret to achieving anything you want comes down to two words: Thinking small.”
“Wins feel good,” Mathers acknowledges. “Feeling good drives us forward, saturating our souls with creative power. Knowing that we can achieve is life-giving. Believing in ourselves and having the faith that we can achieve even the smallest success is vital.”
He shares that the key to success comes down to acknowledging your growth points while setting surmountable goals.
“All we need is for the steps to be small enough so that we can complete the task daily, despite our other commitments, and that we don’t stop doing them,” Mathers concludes.
Approaching challenges with persistence by taking small steps makes you more successful than an average person.
- You make mistakes and learn from them
You might think success is synonymous with perfection, but the reality is that those two things stand nowhere near each other. If you’ve made mistakes and owned your imperfections, you’re more successful than an average person. People who adopt a growth mindset are more likely to learn from mistakes and keep improving over time, instead of letting fear of failure stop them in their tracks.
Part of pushing yourself and aiming to win will inevitably mean losing. Not all the time, but at least some of the time, you won’t get what you want. The value of making mistakes can’t really be overstated, since doing things wrong is how you learn to get it right.
Part of accepting mistakes as inevitable involves having a growth mindset. While someone with a fixed mindset equates making mistakes with being a failure, having a growth mindset means you see mistakes as opportunities to learn and grow.
Being scared of mistakes will hold you back in life, as that fear means you won’t step out of your comfort zone to try something new. If you’re making mistakes, you’re already more successful than an average person.
This week’s focus is on being accomplished. Are your goals practical and accessible? Do you believe you have the power to push through challenges? Do you see mistakes as an opportunity to learn and grow?
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Word-Of-the-Week #2019: Successful
February 19, 2026 by Susan Clarke · Comments Off on Word-Of-the-Week #2019: Successful
Successful – having achieved wealth or desired visions and planned goals.
Do you consider yourself to be a successful person? Do you follow through on what you set out to do?
This week features the first part of “If You’ve Already Accomplished These 11 Things, You’re More Successful Than An Average Person” by Alexandra Blogier at YourTango.com
Everyone defines success differently. Some people measure success by career achievements, money, or material comfort, while others base it on strong relationships, emotional health, and how fulfilled they feel on a day-to-day basis. Success is personal, but that doesn’t mean it’s impossible to recognize. In fact, there are certain life accomplishments and internal shifts that quietly separate truly successful people from everyone else.
In psychological terms, success is often described as the achievement of intention, meaning you followed through on what you set out to do. Real success has less to do with comparison and more to do with growth, self-awareness, and fulfillment. When you stop measuring yourself against others and focus on what actually matters to you, success becomes easier to recognize. If you’ve accomplished the following things, you’re already more successful than the average person — even if it doesn’t always feel that way.
1. You show up as your authentic self
If you’ve channeled your authenticity and let your fullest self shine through, you’re more successful than an average person. Showing up for yourself in an authentic way requires dedicated self-reflection.
You’ve spent time thinking about what makes you feel most like yourself and put those parts of yourself out into the world. Research shows people who express themselves in ways that match their true selves report higher life satisfaction, which means being real is linked to feeling better about life overall.
Cultivating your authenticity isn’t easy, but doing so can bring you success and self-confidence in huge measures. Consultant and well-being expert Tchiki Davis explains why authenticity can be hard to access.
“We’re just trying to fit in, be liked, and be accepted by other human beings,” she points out. “Being yourself can feel risky, and it is. But if you have to hide who you really are, you can end up feeling lost, lonely, or even worthless, because you are basically telling yourself that who you really are isn’t okay.”
“Rather than letting fear drive our self-expression, we need to learn how to accept ourselves so we can truly be who we are,” she reveals.
Davis shares that being authentic means accepting yourself as you are and talking back to your inner critic. It means being vulnerable and celebrating your strengths. Ultimately, channeling your authentic self means owning every part of yourself and announcing to the world that you are exactly enough, just as you are.
2. You commit to lifelong learning
If you’re continually learning, you’re more successful than an average person. Some people believe success means reaching a tangible endpoint. They equate success with mastery and believe once they’re successful, they’ll have nothing left to learn. Yet true success is, in fact, the opposite of knowing everything. True success means admitting you don’t know everything and you’re ready to keep learning.
Research shows that people who embrace lifelong learning tend to be more adaptable and experience greater career progress and personal growth over time, because they’re better equipped to respond to change and advance in their field.
Just as curiosity is a marker of high intelligence, it’s also a sign of success. People who are successful in their professional roles get there by taking on challenges and being adaptable, both of which require a commitment to learning new things. Being open to change is a requirement of being successful, and that kind of mental flexibility can be acquired by teaching yourself new skills and letting others teach you, too.
This week’s focus is on being more successful. Do you accept yourself just as you are? Are you committed to keep learning new things because you don’t know everything? Do you measure success by career achievements or by how fulfilled you feel on a day-to-day basis?
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Word-Of-the-Week #2018: Valentine
February 12, 2026 by Susan Clarke · Comments Off on Word-Of-the-Week #2018: Valentine
Valentine – a card or gift expressing love or affection.
Did you typically give or receive a card or gift expressing love on Valentine’s Day? Are there any other days during the year that you give a gift or a card that expresses your love or affection?
Since today is my birthday and Valentine’s Day is Saturday, I felt it was a good time to revisit what I wrote several years back.
In the Calendar section of the LA Times there is a feature titled, “UNDERRATED” & “OVERRATED” every Sunday. In “OVERRATED” they wrote, “Valentine’s Day: With apologies to jewelers, movie studios and chocolatiers who count on us showering our loved ones with gifts for this magical 24-hour period, we encourage you all to fight the hype. Honor and adore your special someones, certainly, but do the same on any given Sunday. The commercial frenzy of this day strikes us as the romantic equivalent of New Year’s Eve: amateur night.”
Well, I agree! It would be a real shame if I only had one day a year to look forward to giving or receiving a gift or card expressing love or affection. I feel very lucky because Chris and I shower each other with words of love and give cards all year long. And what I like most is that they are given when they are least expected. We also have surprise dates! You only know what the best attire would be given the time of day and year.
I have said in prior WOW’s that we do not give Birthday or Christmas gifts. It’s just not FUN when you have to “come up with something.” Chris wanted a new lens for his camera so he bought it and I said, “Oh great, that’s your Christmas present from me.” And I bought a sweet little emerald in Cartagena that was made into a ring and he gave me that for my birthday. Hey, what could be better? No pressure and no disappointment!
This week think about how you feel about Valentine’s Day. Is it the only day of the year that you give or receive a card or gift expressing love or affection? What if you created one day a week or a month as your surprise Valentine’s Day? How much effort does it really take to honor and adore your significant other? And how nice does it feel to be honored and adored?
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