The Definition Of Success In The Road To Character By David Brooks

From winning a NBA Championship, to getting an A plus on your paper, success is viewed in many different ways, but that doesn't mean there is a proper way to describe success. To different people, success can be described in different ways. New York Times Columnist and author of The Road to Character, David Brooks, talks about how society has slowly shifted their views from morally content to self conceited. From Psychologist and author of Grit, Angela Duckworth explains what it means to have a purpose and described it in three different sections. Dr. Gina Robinson, Head of Pediatrics at the Cleveland Clinic, talked about what it means to her to be successful in her professional and personal life. Vice President of Client Fulfillment at her …show more content…

Patience is something that someone have to learn and become acquainted with because it is what can help lead to the overall success. In an interview with Krista Scott Rodriguez she said, “I owned my own business for seven years. The difficult part was having to close when business was not good”(Rodriguez Interview). This shows a lot of patience because she dedicated all those years to her company, but when it went began to not be successful she called it quits because she knew it wasn’t meant to be and she would have to wait her time to come. Patience is a key characteristic to describe success because there is a old saying that goes, good things come to those who wait, and that is true because when someone wants to have something happen correctly or perfect, it cannot be rushed in the sense that it takes time to have overall success. When I asked Dr. Gina Robinson, about her education prior to high school and thereon, “I went to college for four years, add on medical school for another four year, and lastly three years of residency. It might’ve been a long wait but all that time helped prepare me to get where I am today”(Robinson Interview). She clearly shows patience because she knew going in that she would be in school for more than a couple years but she never let that intimidate her because she knew her overall goal she set out to accomplish and she wouldn’t be denied it. It also …show more content…

Being able to overcome any adversity and not being delayed on their road to success. For Louie Zamperini, the 1936 Olympics which were being held in Berlin was a very small possibility, “The idea was a stretch. The mile was four laps; the 5,000 was more than twelve-three miles and 188 yards. He had only two weeks to train, and with the Olympics trials in July, two months to become America’s youngest elite 5,000 man”(Hillenbrand 24). Perseverance is shown above because Louie knew that to qualify for the Olympics he would have many challenges and delays in his way, but his goal was set and he was going to do anything to attain his goal. This relates back to the theme of perseverance because Louie knew that nobody his age had ever made the Olympics and at where he was at the moment in regards to running it seemed farfetched, but he knew that he had nothing to lose but everything to gain in he attempted, so he went for it and trained tirelessly. When Jane Golden was asked about her struggles she said, “There are moments when I cry. I think I just can’t do it anymore, push that boulder up the hill. But feeling sorry for myself is pointless, so I find ways to get energized”(Duckworth 10). Being diagnosed with lupus and being told that she wouldn't have long to live, she had a new perspective on life and she would do anything that she could to reach her goal and make a positive change. That