Success isn’t what makes you happy. It really isn’t. Success is doing what makes you happy and doing good work and hopefully having a fruitful life. If I’ve felt like I’ve done good work, that makes me happy. The success part of it is all gravy.
I first saw Philip Seymour Hoffman as Lester Bangs in Cameron Crowe’s 2000 film Almost Famous. As a high school student who wanted to be a writer and possibly a journalist, Patrick Fugit’s fresh-faced William Miller struck a chord. Hoffman’s character was the world-weary music writer who reveled in where he’d been, and who loved to share what he knew with others who wanted to follow in his footsteps. It was neat to see the chemistry between the two characters on screen.
I think that his philosophy of success, quoted above, is a great mantra to keep in mind. We’re definitely doing what makes us happy here, and we hope that we bring happiness to you, the reader as well.