Success to me means serving a calling higher than yourself that

Jonny Kim, a man who has walked paths of fire and of stars—Navy SEAL, physician, astronaut—once spoke with the clarity of one who has lived many lives: “Success to me means serving a calling higher than yourself that improves the lives of everyone and is done completely in the name of service.” These words shine with the gravity of ancient truth. For they remind us that success is not measured in riches or recognition, but in devotion to a purpose greater than the self. It is not in crowns of gold, but in acts of service, that true greatness is found.

The ancients knew this well. They taught that the man who lives only for himself builds a house of sand, but the one who lives for others lays foundations of stone. In Rome, the greatest honor was not wealth but virtus—courage and duty offered for the good of the republic. In Greece, heroes were remembered not for the glory they seized, but for the sacrifices they made. Jonny Kim’s words are the modern echo of this timeless law: that service to others is the true root of success, and any lesser definition is but shadow.

Consider the story of Florence Nightingale. Born into privilege, she could have chosen a life of ease. Instead, she followed a higher calling: to heal the wounded and to ease the suffering of soldiers in war. In the filth of Crimean hospitals, where disease claimed more lives than battle, she brought light—both literally, with her lamp, and figuratively, with her tireless care. She did not seek wealth, nor acclaim, but only to serve. And from that service, she changed medicine forever. This is the kind of success Kim speaks of: a triumph measured not in trophies, but in lives restored.

Kim himself embodies his own teaching. As a Navy SEAL, he risked his life not for personal gain, but for comrades and country. As a physician, he healed the sick and vulnerable. As an astronaut, he prepared to serve humanity by venturing beyond the Earth. At every stage, his measure of success was the same: to serve a higher calling. His life is a living parable of his own words, a reminder that true greatness comes not from accumulation, but from service.

Yet how easy it is for the world to forget this. We are told that success is power, or wealth, or applause. We chase fleeting shadows, thinking they will satisfy the soul. But the heart grows empty, and the spirit restless, until it discovers what Kim and the ancients knew: only by giving yourself to others do you find fulfillment. To live for self is to shrink; to live for service is to expand, to touch eternity itself.

The lesson is clear: do not measure yourself by what you gather, but by what you give. Do not ask, What can the world bring to me? Ask instead, What can I bring to the world? For in this reversal lies the path to true success. The harvest of service is not always immediate, but its fruit endures beyond your own lifetime, feeding generations yet unborn.

Practical wisdom follows: seek daily to serve in small ways, for even the smallest service is noble when done with sincerity. Offer a word of comfort, lend your strength to the weary, give your time to a cause that uplifts others. And if you are called to greater acts, embrace them with courage, not for your own name, but for the good of all. Live not as one who hoards light, but as one who spreads it, and you will find the peace that only service brings.

So let Jonny Kim’s words be engraved upon your heart: “Success means serving a calling higher than yourself… done completely in the name of service.” Carry this truth as a guiding flame. For crowns tarnish and wealth fades, but service endures. When you give yourself to others, you step into the realm of the eternal, and your success becomes not only your own, but the shared triumph of humanity itself.