Using Data For Personal Success

The biggest takeaway that I have, from life so far, is that everyone has a different path to success and a different definition of success - but if you find some people who have done things you want to do, work places you want to work, and have achieved things you want to achieve - ask them how they did it.

Take their stories and paths to success, let's think of them as routes, to get from where you are (or somewhere similar) to where you want to be.

If you had to make $100 and didn't know how to, you could ask 5 people what they did/or would do and you'll find either a hum of consistent responses or variations, but chances are you will find one way that sounds most feasible for you and most similar to your background.

This may even sound practical for some, yet most of us never do this with success.

First, you must define what success means to you in order to seek out those people who share the traits or experiences you want. But then, you start to explore and learn. I took it upon myself at my time last summer at Red Hat to ask around 15 different people to grab coffee and share their experiences with me.

I learned different strategies and ways to approach similar problems and circumstances, and some of them I related to some of them I didn't - but that allowed me to narrow down the paths I saw to find one that suited me.

When I got back to school I did the same thing. I started talking to students who were still in school or just graduated and were doing things I thought were amazing, and were incredibly accomplished individuals. And again, I learned other variations of routes and paths to get where I wanted to be.

"Work smarter not harder" is something often told to students with how to focus on studying, but I think it's just as applicable to career choices and routes to success.

The world is becoming data driven, so why shouldn't you?

And I'm not saying a gut instinct or intuition is something not to rely on, I actually rely on mine a lot with similar choices I can't decide between - but you have feelings about one decision because of past experiences. Your mind remembers past choices and how they ended.

So define success for yourself, then go meet some incredible people and chase your dreams. Set bold goals and crush them - and don't let anyone else define them for you. You probably wouldn't let someone from a different discipline take a test for you, so don't let them take the wheel from you.

It's your life, your success, and your route to take. All you have to do is decide which one to take.