Self-Devpt. Nuggets™

“Quiet Success” vs “Loud Success”: Which Is Better? If you think that’s an odd question, bear with me as I explain. Generally, wealth acquired through creative endeavours (like entrepreneuring, sports, entertainment) are especially popular measures of success. In contrast, less widely followed avenues to success (like investing) can often be more lucrative, even as they require less “work”. Yet they get ignored by majority of society’s members seeking success. This probably happens because most people assume a popular endeavour will be more profitable than one which is not.

Very untrue!

How “Loud Success” Differs From “Quiet Success”

Let now clarify what I mean by the above mentioned terms.

Most adults today know the story of Michael Jackson’s success from his childhood days as a member of the Jackson Five (I’ve been a huge fan since I was old enough to think).

He was a child prodigy, the likes of which we may probably never see again. And he grew up to achieve mega levels of fame and success as an adult.

The world’s media showcased his massive talent till he became a household name, and probably the most recognizable musician worldwide.

I call that “Loud Success”.

“Loud” here is not used in a negative sense. It’s simply meant to indicate that the success achieved was widely publicised and followed by a large majority of the population.

In contrast to the above, most people around the world (who were aware of MJ’s growing success) knew little or nothing about Warren Buffet until well into his adult years, when he was declared one of the world’s richest men.

Even today, we rarely see or hear this man on TV or radio, as was the case with MJ.

To make money Mr. Buffet (unlike his musically gifted counterpart/fellow countryman) did/does not have to dance and sweat for hours under hot stage lights.

Crowds of fanaticals fans did/don’t follow him around screaming his name and pleading for autographs. We don’t have life size posters and pictures of him being briskly sold at various places.

Most interestingly, he is known for living frugally and giving away most of his wealth to charities and other causes.

And yet this man, Warren Buffet, is worth billions of dollars – more than MJ ever owned.

I call that “Quiet Success”.

“Quiet” is used here to indicate the considerably less popular nature of the route (i.e. investment) followed by this financial genius to achieve his own version of success.

(NB: I note here that MJ did get into the Guinness Book of records for his charitable giving. As an entertainer however, living frugally must have been difficult to do, even if he’d wanted to. Fame of the kind he had comes at a steep price).

A Career or Vocation Does Not Need to Be Popular to Be Profitable

Think about what I’ve said above for just one moment. I’m sure you’ll readily identify a few examples you know of, that validate my argument.

Human beings love to follow what’s considered by the crowd to be “trending”. Sometimes this can be good. But many times it can be a very unwise thing to do.

In “Gifted Hands”, his bestselling book, Dr. Ben Carson – the world famous brain surgeon – highlighted this problem with specific reference to the career choices being made by inner city African American kids.

He rightly pointed out how highly the odds are stacked up against those seeking success through playing sports without completing their education.

A lucky few make it, and those are the ones the media puts in our faces round the clock. What we often forget is that so many others who pursue success through this channel never make it to the big leagues where riches can really be had.

On the other hand, a sound education provides something to fall back on that you can exploit to build riches. It equips you to learn any vocation and succeed at it via persistence.

The only difference is that even when you begin succeeding, people may not pay you the kind of attention they devote to those in engaged in the popular vocations.

At least not while you’re yet to achieve a major breakthrough. That was the experience Ben Carson had.

But if you practice continuous improvement, and persist diligently (like he did), you’ll eventually achieve noteworthy recognition and success, with relevant financial rewards to show for it.

By way of interest, Robert Kiyosaki used a similar analogy in one of his books, contrasting Bill Gates’ route to success, with Michael Jordan’s relatively “louder” journey to success.

Final Words: Which Is Easier Or Better?

Regarding which type of success is “easier” to achieve, I believe it’s a matter of personal perspective.

Judging from my experiences, the difficulty of any task depends mainly on the perspective of the individual who has to carry it out.

Many times a task one person considers difficult (because he does not enjoy doing it), could be seen by another (who loves doing it) as easy.

It’s the same thing in business. And that’s why we’re advised to choose careers or vocations that we have a natural interest in or flair for.

As for which is “better”, I’d say for most people, the less popular route that leads to quiet success will probably prove more rewarding in the long run.

Of course, nothing stops any adequately motivated person from exploring both channels.

You could for instance try out first for success in a “loud” or popular vocation, and if unsuccessful switch to the less popular alternative.

Ultimately, your choices and decisions should be guided by a sound understanding of the distinctions between the two routes to success discussed here.

That will help you strike an intelligent balance in your pursuit of emotionally fulfilling, financially rewarding, and long lasting success.