Success Is an Obligation

Years ago, walking downtown Vancouver with my young son, we passed Hastings Street—raw, uncomfortable, unavoidable. He noticed the number of people living on the street and asked the question every honest child asks: Why are they here? Why don’t they have a place to live?

I told him the truth. There are many reasons. Some are tragic and outside a person’s control. Others are the result of choices made over time. Then I said something that stuck with both of us: Your obligation is not to become one of them.

That may sound harsh. It isn’t. It’s a responsibility.

Success isn’t about status, money, or applause. Success is about stewardship—of your life, your talents, and your future. When you abdicate responsibility, you don’t just hurt yourself. You burden your family, your community, and society at large. Someone else has to carry the weight you refused to lift.

Here’s the uncomfortable truth most people avoid: your quality of life is not determined by the economy, your parents, your spouse, your education, or even outrageous circumstances. Those things influence your path—but they do not decide your destination. Decisions do. Actions do. Repeated daily choices do.

One of the most corrosive habits I see is blame. Blame the government. Blame the system. Blame your boss. Blame the past. Blame feels comforting because it removes responsibility—but it also removes power. The moment you blame something outside yourself, you hand over control. And without control, change is impossible.

This is how people get trapped. Not by iron bars, but by narratives. “I can’t.” “I didn’t get a fair shot.” “Someone else should fix this.” These stories feel justified—but they quietly lock the door from the inside.

Breaking free starts with radical ownership. Own your decisions. Own your outcomes. Own your next move—even if your last one was a disaster. Especially then.

History is full of people who turned calamity into contribution—serious illness, catastrophic accidents, crushing failures—yet they rebuilt meaningful, productive lives. Not because life was fair, but because they refused to surrender agency.

A fulfilling life isn’t built by waiting for conditions to improve. It’s built by deciding who you will be regardless of conditions.

Success is not optional. It’s a responsibility—to yourself, to those who depend on you, and to a society that needs contributors, not victims.

The door isn’t locked.

You’re just the one holding the key.

#success, #life habits, #buildacashcow, #Joseph Willmott, #business success, #obligations

Joseph Willmott, CEO of World Referral Network

worldreferralnetwork.com

jwillmott@worldreferralnetwork.com

604-612-9494

https://www.linkedin.com/in/joseph-willmott-0a746b/

Blog: https://www.buildacashcow.com/

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