I heard this recently: there is no such thing as success, there is just different levels of failure. Now depending on the recipient of this message, it may inspirational or pessimistic. but to me it made me think of success being a journey and not a destination.
Success has it's ups and downs, it has it's moments of gloom and it's ecstacy. It comes with small victories and it has it's minor setbacks.You can also measure success in increments instead of one big chunk. Even if you think you are failing in a specific task, goal, relationship, job, career, business, there are lessons that are learned in each so called failure or setback. 
Success reminds me of the Indian dish Biryani. It is a dish of rice, lentils, vegetable, meat and spices. It is all cooked together and comes together in a wonderful taste sensation. However one of the spices which is integral to this dish is the spice called cardomom, or what the Indians call Elachi. This is a spice that truly enhances the dish. And when it is bitten into while eating, it can be distasteful.
However cardomom is a necessary "evil' in the success of this dish called biryani.


Remember that you cannot count yourself a success in business if are failing with your children or marriage. You cannot count yourself successful if you have a well run company and your health is taking a back seat.
Would you count yourself successful if you are losing friends and reputation all around you while gaining in other grounds?
Success is all encompassing. It is all demanding. It is a triad. It is to do with mind, body and soul. The Bible speaks about it in the New Testament. Not a direct quote- "what good is it to a man when he gains the entire world but loses his soul."

Plural-aligned to success

The whole idea of success is to get a grip on what behaviour is needed to be successful and then align your actions to that and lock it in.