Chris Brogan is a thought leader in social media circles. I, like many other people interested in connecting through blogs, Twitter, Facebook, Ning, etc., receive updates and nuggets of online community wisdom from him in my email inbox once a week or so. Today he posted a piece about what it takes to be and overnight success. 

I watched this video just moments after my husband Martin left the table at one of our favorite cafes where we’d shared a cup of coffee. We’d been speaking about the challenges of running a small business in a state that takes more than 60% of income in taxes and how we’ve created a system that almost requires business owners to “work the system” or close their doors (Martin chose the latter a few years ago.) “It is because people here need so much,” he said of the conundrum that forces people to check their values at the door when they get to work. “People don’t place a premium on this. Sitting together, having coffee to start the day…just being together.”

Don’t get me wrong. Martin and I work hard. He is in school and trying to turn heads in two impossible businesses – art and music. I am a college professor studying for my PhD in Organizational Leadership and putting the finishing touches on my first book which releases in May 2010. We have an 11 year old son at home and two away in college. We wake up early (sometimes) and put our heads down well after midnight (most of the time). We sacrifice time and juggle responsibilities to meet deadlines and pursue our dreams. However, I do not agree with Mr. Brogan that the measure of my success will reside in my ability to shelve hobbies and rest in pursuit of some unachievable moment when enough will be enough. Martin and I did that for more than 15 years and, despite the ample six-figure salaries, 4000 square foot house, European vacations and impressive titles, our desire for the elusive “more” was never quite satiated.

So now, as I embark upon a second career as a teacher and writer, my vision of success has changed. It is the pursuit of passion…and balance…that drives me rather than the “having it all” delusion I embraced early in my career or the “sacrifice all for success” message I hear in Mr. Brogan’s post and video. 

That said, I’ll admit that old habits die hard. I find myself struggling sometimes to pull myself away from the computer in order to stay true to this new way. Apparently achieving balance, like any other worthwhile endeavor, requires discipline and practice. 

I wonder if I’ll be able to pull it off…