When people talk about their successes, they often speak in terms of material wealth, status, or achievements. The details can vary because success is, at its core, arbitrary and how one person defines it can be very different from how someone else does. Success can also be fleeting, come at the expense of personal well-being, and cause us to lose sight of what truly matters.
I firmly believe that significance is more important than success. By striving to make a significant impact on the lives those around us, whether personally or professionally, we achieve a greater sense of personal growth, happiness and fulfillment than the pursuit of success can provide. It allows us to foster deeper relationships and make more meaningful connections with our families, communities, and industry. It also offers us the opportunity to make a positive mark on the world, leaving behind a legacy that has the potential to inspire future generations.
With significance, there is a threshold: you’re either significant to someone or you’re not. Because of this, it’s a more tangible key performance indicator (KPI) than success. If I can be significant in someone’s life, that means more to me than feeling as though I’ve been successful.
Studies have shown that people who prioritize significance over success tend to lead happier, more fulfilling lives and experience a sense of purpose that extends well beyond personal achievements.
At Agronomix, we don’t define success by the number of customers we have or the amount of money we make. We define it by how significant we are in helping our clients achieve their goals. That starts with a conversation that aids us in better understanding what they’re doing, how they’re doing it, and what we can do to assist them.
To have that conversation, we need to be knowledgeable in who our customers are. We have staff, for instance, who hail from Latin America and have a deep understanding of that culture as well as hands-on plant breeding experience specific to the crops and climates of the region. We believe this cultural and technical knowledge is vital to our clients’ success.
Let me be clear: success doesn’t have to be sacrificed in favour of significance. The two can complement each other. Significance often involves setting meaningful goals and working diligently to achieve them. But success itself isn’t the end-goal, rather a consequence of the commitment to making a positive difference.
In the end, significance is what truly matters.
