The Beatles came to America for my birthday, many years ago. They didn’t know it, but I did. That is the way of Fame – no thought for my existence.

George Harrison famously asserted that the Beatles didn’t want to be famous – they wanted to be successful.

That is an important distinction for me, their acolyte, as well: I don’t want to be famous – I want to be self-actualized. I strive to be effective and fulfilled. I cherish service. There is no better bliss.

I spoke with a young woman recently. She shared that she was going to write a blog and asked me about mine. I shared that I enjoy the opportunity to share life reflections, opinions, and perspectives. I said that it’s an appointment to write, so that I write often.

“Oh, yes,” she agreed. “I’ll do that, too. I wouldn’t want to let down my fans and followers.”

Uhm, fans? Followers?

That was the face of Entitlement, a woman who assumed she’d have fans though she hadn’t written a word. From whence comes this Entitlement? Whatever happened to ‘Earn’?

Please help unravel the reflexive expectations of Fame. We all need a better quest, a higher calling and purpose than that. We need a more comprehensively loving definition of Success.

Like the one that Ralph Waldo Emerson gave us: