Sweat?  Sacrifice?  Compromise?  What is the real secret to success?  Theories abound, but the answer is probably all of the above.  According to those who know, success seems to be a combination of many factors, with sweat, sacrifice and compromise heading up the list.

Success requires sweat.  Two kinds:  the perspiration of day after day of hard work and the sweaty palms of fear, anxiety and worry.  Thanks to air conditioned offices and good morning hygiene, most people don’t leave their work stations literally sweating at the end of the day.  However, the satisfied feeling of having invested a whole day’s time and attention and energy to a project or assignment has the same effect as a long run or heavy lifting; there is pain and relief at the same time, a sort of natural high because you’ve accomplished something. 

Those sweaty palms are actually another sign of success.  Anxiety is a healthy emotion that leads people to double check their work, think carefully through plans and ask better questions.  Total confidence is totally useless.  The only certainties in life are supposed to be death and taxes, and these days even death is something that can be reversed.  Assuming you know less than you should, that nervous feeling can lead you to discover new, better information.  Anxiety channeled into motivation separates those who want to succeed from those who do.