The Extraordinary Lives of ‘Ordinary’ People

Outoftheordinary 0

Judging from the amazing feedback we’ve received over the last few months, it’s fair to say that the changes we’ve made to SUCCESS have been well-received. The vast majority of readers love the new look and feel, the deeper stories, and the array of new voices contributing advice and opinions in print and on the CDs.

Bringing these needed changes to the magazine has been a labor of love for so many of us. The truth is, SUCCESS has always been a production of dozens of people across the country, each bringing different skills, interests and ideas to the table. There is not now, nor has there ever been, one person doing it on his own. We all work in concert, and that’s crucial because a lot of minds coming together cohesively are so much more powerful than any single one.

So that’s where you come in. Yes, you.

 

There are a lot of people living by our holistic view of success—with happiness, health, wealth and a feeling of purpose—whose stories are rarely told. Maybe that’s you.

 

Through the years, readers have repeatedly asked us to tell more stories about “ordinary people.” Now, I’m not sure there is such a thing, because what’s ordinary anyway? We all have our foibles that make us unique, our own challenges and our own breakthroughs. But I’ve always thought readers were actually asking for us to tell stories of people with whom they can easily identify—people who aren’t billionaire entrepreneurs or famous for acting in movies or driving race cars.

(OK, I mention race cars as a segue to promise you’ll be surprised by how much you can learn from the March issue cover guy, NASCAR champion Jimmie Johnson, about how to work with the people who will partner in your achievement. No one lands on our cover unless we think the person serves up valuable lessons.)

Related: Jimmie Johnson: ‘Pushing the Limit Isn’t Always the Way you Succeed’

But our readers’ point is well-taken. There are a lot of people living by our holistic view of success—with happiness, health, wealth and a feeling of purpose—whose stories are rarely told. Maybe that’s you.

And there are a lot of people pushing, fighting, scraping to achieve those four pillars of success. Again, maybe that’s you.

Either way, we want to know about it. As you flip through the March issue and listen to the CD, notice a few calls to action. Not only are we making it clearer than ever how you can apply SUCCESS lessons to your daily life to achieve the results you want, but we’re asking that you tell us about yourself—about your business, your career, your relationships and the strides you make in spite of difficult obstacles.

Email us with all the details, and you could be featured in the pages of SUCCESS, on SUCCESS.com or through our social media channels. I’m talking about the full SUCCESS treatment, with a photo shoot, an interview and exposure to our audience of millions.

Send your personal story to [email protected]. We’ll mine the inbox every day to find the stories of extraordinary people just like you.

 

This article appears in the March 2016 issue of SUCCESS magazine.

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Josh Ellis is the former editor in chief for SUCCESS magazine. Before joining SUCCESS in 2012, he was an accomplished digital and print sportswriter, working for the Dallas Cowboys Star magazine, the team’s gameday program, and DallasCowboys.com. Originally from Longview, Texas, he began writing for his hometown newspaper at 16.

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