成功的错误标志

Today I want to touch upon something I think is important, but all too easy to forget when you’re out to make money and cut those day-job shackles from your ankles.

今天我想谈及一些我认为重要的事。那些当你外出谋生和结束一天劳顿之后又很容易忘掉的事。

I’m talking about the false symbols of success that so many worship.

我说的是那些对不正确的成功标志的崇拜。

The big houses, nice boats, fast cars, expensive watches, piles of money, and other goodies.

大大的别墅，豪华的游轮，跑车，名贵的手表，大把的钞票还有其他的好东西。

I’ve been lucky in my life, because I’ve experienced a lot of these “symbols”, which has helped me realize that they aren’t worth pursuing.

我的人生已经很幸运了，因为我已经经历了太多这种“成功的标志”，它们让我意识到它们并不值得追逐。

I used to think money was the be all and end all of happiness, but oh was I wrong.

我过去常常认为金钱是幸福的关键所在，但是我错了。

You can spot false symbols of success quite easily. If you set a goal to make $100,000 a year, but only need $50,000, the goal might feel good while you’re working towards it, and even give you satisfaction when you reach it, but after a while, it just feels empty, without substance.

你可以很容易的辨认出这些关于成功的错误标志。如果你一年只需要50000美元但却设置了一个一年赚100000美元的目标，当你努力完成这个目标时或许会感觉不错，甚至当目标达到时会令你很满意。但是一段时间之后，它只会让你觉得空虚，没有一点充实的感觉。

What matters in life are the connections we have, the value we give, and the experiences we have. Sounds cheesy, but that’s the conclusion I’ve reached, for now.

在生命中有意义东西的是我们所拥有的联系，我们所能给予的价值，以及我们所拥有的经历。听起来很老套，但是这就是我目前所能给出的结论。

Now, I’m far from perfect in that I only go after “pure” goals, because I get sucked into greed over and over again, and sometimes that’s exactly the nudge I need to stay on track.

现在我还远远没有达到只追求纯粹的目标的境界，因为我一再地被贪婪所羁绊。有时那正是我确保不偏离正轨的动力。

Fame

名誉

I like to say that I’ve never wanted fame, but I’d be lying, because deep down I know that I like recognition.

我很想说我从没有想要得到名誉，但是我那是在说谎，因为从内心深处我是想得到赞誉的。

But I also know that getting Brad Pitt-like status where I can’t go outside without being recognized would be horrible.

但我也知道，如果让我像Brad Pitt（美国演员-译者注）那样一出门就被认出来，那简直是件可怕的事。

A small dose of recognition is normal. We all want to be seen as contributors in our community or tribe, and that’s healthy.

少量的赞誉是正常的。我们都想被我们的社区或家族视作有贡献的人，这是很健康的想法。

What’s unhealthy is the constant struggle I see towards stardom. People sacrificing everything to become famous. It may just be what they need to experience right then and there, but it still kills me inside to see someone chasing something … unreal.

不健康的是通往成名之路的持续的挣扎。人们为了成名可以做任何事情。或许那是当时当地他们应当做的，但我内心深处仍难接受人们追逐那些虚幻的东西。

Success

成功

Success means different things to different people, but what is success really? Is it accomplishing what you truly value?

对于不同的人，成功意味着不同的东西，但成功究竟是什么？是实现你真正的价值吗？

Most likely not.

很可能不是。

It’s usually accomplishing something that someone else values, which in this case is society, parents, friends, and so on. That’s why our parents want us to become lawyers, doctors, and bankers.

成功通常是在社会交往中得到跟自己价值相匹配的东西。这就是为什么我们的父母希望我们能成为律师，医生或者银行家。

Well, to be honest, mine didn’t push me towards those, but there is always some bias to take the traditional path, which is go to school, get good grades, and buy stuff that is “important.”

老实讲，我的成功定义并不不是我这些，但总有些偏让我见去走这些“传统的道路”，去学校，拿到一个好的成绩然后购买那些所谓“重要”的东西。

Getting a great job leads to an avalanche of money, which means that you can buy a nice house, a fast car, and get security.

得到一份好工作会有雪花般的钞票，那意味着你可以买不错的房子，跑车，得到安全感。

Instead of blindly accepting the symbols of success that someone else gives to us, I think it is far more important to sit down and determine for yourself what success means to you, and what it doesn’t.

但相对于盲目的接受那些别人给你的成功标志，我认为坐下来想想成功对你来说到底是什么和不是什么才更为重要。

Only when we think for ourselves can we become truly free. Earning money online is all well and good, but if you aren’t careful, it can become just another job, just another 9-to-5.

在网上赚钱是一件很不错的事情，但是如果你一不小心，它就会成为另一份朝九晚五的工作。

The cycle repeats itself, until something changes inside of you.

如果你不从内心开始改变，这个循环就会重复。

Money

金钱

I was lucky to have stumbled onto online poker when I was 18. It was one of my early wake up calls.

我很幸运，在我18岁的时候在网络扑克上面栽过跟头。那是让我警醒的事件之一。

It got me thinking about what truly made me fulfilled. It led me to start meditating more, to start questioning what is going on, and to start taking responsibility for my own life.

它让我思考什么才能真正满足我。它让我思考了很多东西，我问自己到底出了什么事，并开始为自己的人生负责。

I had all the money I needed, but I wasn’t any happier.

我有钱了，但我不再快乐了。

You can read all the books you want about happiness, but they don’t truly have an impact until you experience it for yourself.

你可以阅读所有关于幸福的书籍，但只有你亲身经历过后这些书籍才会对你有所影响。

I didn’t become enlightened through that first realization, but it helped me become aware of the fact that something wasn’t quite right.

通过那件事我并没有变得开明，但它让我意识到有些事情并不正确。

I’ve always had an easy time falling into greed and doing things for money, but sooner or later I always snap out of it, because it doesn’t make me fulfilled.

我经常很容易得变得贪心，为钱做事，但我总能或早或晚的重新振作起来，因为它并不能让我得到满足。

I like making money, but I love making money when I’m helping someone or providing value just like I’m doing with this article.

我喜欢赚钱，但我更喜欢通过帮助别人或者提供有价值的东西赚钱，就像现在我写这篇文章一样。

What you put out, comes back to you。

你赶走什么，什么还会再回来。

Stuff

物质

Then we have the little things, such as designer clothes, bags, shoes, new phones, gadgets, and all the rest of them.

此外我们的生活中还有一些小东西，比如名牌服装，名牌包和鞋，新手机，小配件等等等等。

Buying a Playstation console and playing now and then is cool, I even think it’s productive, because it’s fun to go 1-on-1 versus your friends playing FIFA or NHL, but it makes me bored after awhile, because I completely destroy everyone at those games  .

买台游戏机时不时的玩一下，确实挺酷的。我甚至认为它很有价值，因为跟朋友玩一对一的FIFA 或者NHL对决很有意思。但是很快我就会觉得无聊，因为我在那些游戏中能干掉所有人。

I live next to an IKEA, which is the epitome of our consumer culture, and what amazes me time and time again is how frequently the parking lot is packed with people buying stuff they don’t need.

我主的地方紧挨着宜家，宜家是消费文化的缩影，它总是让我吃惊，因为停车场总是被那些买了一堆自己不需要的东西的人挤满，

Buying more stuff serves as a distraction from looking inward and facing the emptiness that so many are experiencing today.

当今许多人正经历着需要内省以面对无知。购买更多的东西正好分散了人们对这些事情的注意力。

People aren’t fulfilled, a piece of them is missing, but things do not change until they reach a breaking point.

如果少了一点这些物质的东西，人们都不会觉得满足的，但是事情不会改变直到他们遇到所谓的人生转折点。

When the suffering becomes impossible to avoid and when there’s nothing left than to face it, then you either change or you break.

当苦难变得不可避免，不得不面对对它时，你就需要改变了，否则你只有灭亡。

Wrapping Up

包扎伤口

What I wanted to get across in this article is that it’s important that you remember what is truly important to you, even though you want to earn a living online.

我想通过这篇文章告诉大家，最重要的事情是要记住什么东西才是对自己最重要的，即使你只是想通过网络谋生。

I’m learning more and more about this myself, and it is a topic I’m hugely passionate about, because not only does it affect you and me individually, but it affects the whole planet and our future.

我正在越来越多的了解自己，我对此有强烈的激情，因为它不仅仅影响到你我，而且还影响到整个星球和人类的未来。

Does it make sense to keep consuming as we do today?

如果继续像现在这样消费有意义吗？

What will our future look like if we do not adapt?

如果我们不适应，未来会怎样？

I’m an optimist, so I believe that we will learn, but it will take time.

我是个乐观主义者，所以我相信我们会去学习，但是得花时间。

What do you think?

你怎么想呢？undefined

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