Society usually measures success by external results; the achievements we accumulate and the status we attain. All around us, however, we see how people are suffering from the emptiness of this premise. Regardless of whether that external success is achieved or not, people seem to, at some point, recognize how hollow this outward pursuit is. Those who haven't reached success justify their disappointment in having fallen short. And those who have achieved it sometimes continue on an everlasting outward pursuit for more and more. 

For many seeking a way out of this malaise, questioning the motivation behind what we do may comes up.  As we start noticing the seams of this terrestrial reality, we can second guess any impetus for action. 

Fortunately, we were blessed with the ability for introspection and we can all access inspiring works by great thinkers and artists who came before us, we can take a walk amongst trees or listen to the many signals of the universe eloquently nudging us towards the insights we may need as individuals so that we find a way for the outer world to become a means to discover the universe within and continue taking action that comes from a soulful place.

In conversations with friends from the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta, I've noticed a simple, but powerful mindset that seems to address this discomfort.  My good friend Hermes Izquierdo, for instance, after a full night of playing music with mastery and in pure connection to everyone and everything around him, will turn around and introduce himself, not as a musician, but as an Arhuaco.  What he does is not who he is.  I interpret this as that his sense of identity is not linked to what he does.  Very different from the Western world where we have collapsed these two questions into one. Our identity is tied to how we perform in the world, and we tend to lead with our careers and our success within them.  "I'm an educator," "I'm a musician," "I'm a director." So, when that external measure falters, so does our sense of self.