There are all sorts of individuals that are trying to achieve their goals, and the idea of “success” certainly takes on many different forms. Of course, one of the reasons that many entrepreneurs start a business is to become successful, even if they might be passionate about the specific vision, cause, or organization.

However, “success” looks differently to different people. There are some that believe that success means having a tremendous amount of free time, and others that believe that success means not living from paycheck to paycheck. Either way, here are ten lies that entrepreneurs are often told about success.

1. Luck Is Necessary

There are all sorts of individuals that have overcome obstacles of all kinds to become an entrepreneur. There is certainly nothing wrong with luck, or favorable circumstances, but the idea that it is “necessary” is a wrong one. For example, Daymond John’s own mother took a mortgage out on her house in hopes that his business would succeed. There was no “luck” when it came to funding or investments for Mr. John, and yet he was able to create an immensely successful clothing company.

2. You Have To Be Ruthless

There are plenty of people that believe that every rich person has exploited the poor in order to get there. However, this simply is not always the case. There are musicians and public speakers that have motivated millions all over the world, and become successful as a result. In addition, there are individuals like Erik Finman, who simply made an extremely smart investment, and was able to succeed that way. Finman certainly didn’t have to exploit or step on anyone to become successful, and neither do you.

3. It Happens Quickly

You may have seen people go from unknown to rich and famous within months, or even weeks. This may help perpetuate the notion that success is something that happens extremely quickly, but the truth is that success often takes a tremendous amount of time. In fact, it takes the average self-made millionaire over three decades to reach a seven-figure net worth.

4. Anyone Can Do It

We would all love to think that everyone can always become successful. Of course, there is some truth to this. There are plenty of situations where an individual can work hard, save money, and eventually reach a level of success. However, “anyone” cannot do it. It certainly takes a certain amount of discipline and motivation to become successful.

5. Success Is All There Is

Some of the same people that stress success seem to believe that it’s the entire point of life. Of course, this isn’t the case. There are many “reasons” for life, whether you consider it family, friends, travel, love, a certain passion, or otherwise. You might feel as though success is part of life, while also recognizing that there are other aspects of life that make it a complete life. Success might be a goal, but it doesn’t have to be your entire life.

6. Success Means Jealousy

There are plenty of insecure people out there. There are individuals that are insecure about the way that their body looks, the way that they publicly speak, or the way that they interact with the opposite sex. As a result, their success might become a way to make up for their shortcomings.

Some people believe that the only way you are successful is if other people are jealous of you. However, this isn’t true. There are plenty of successful people that support each other, and are friends with each other, and this mentality is clearly quite toxic.

7. Success Is One Place

How do you think that someone becomes a millionaire? The truth is that it might have taken a tremendous amount of work, and that they were worth several hundred thousands of dollars but made the right moves and maneuvers to reach millionaire status.

What about billionaires? They clearly reached a millionaire status, and felt like they should continue on their journey. The idea of “success” changes the more successful that you become, and one should not think of it as a static goal.

8. Success Requires Risk

There are some individuals that have risked a tremendous amount of money in order to become rich and successful. However, there are also entrepreneurs that have taken a small amount of money and managed to scale a business exponentially.

The point is that you actually don’t have to take a tremendous amount of risk in order to be successful. A well-placed $10,000 investment, in a tech startup, for example, might end up being worth millions. A $10,000 investment might not be much of a “risk” to some people. Similarly, conservative investors might make sure that their investments are low-risk, only to find that it paid off significantly.

9. Success Requires Speed

There are some people that believe that an individual or business is only successful because they are constantly on their next venture, or their business is focusing on their next feature. However, that might not be the way it works.

For example, if you’re an author, you might find that your book from ten years ago suddenly became a cult classic, and that movie studios are now willing to offer you life-changing money for the rights to you novels. This certainly would be more of a “random” success story, but it had nothing to do with speed or scaling.

10. You Need Certain Skills

There are people that are successful in all sorts of ways, whether they have created a line of organic food products or launched a cosmetics company. There are some that believe that you must learn certain skills in order to succeed, such as coding, how to trade/invest, or how to purchase real estate.

The truth is that you can be successful on your own terms, whether it’s through a podcast, Youtube channel, or graphic design company. Of course, you should research the sector and make sure that you are in the best position possible for success.

Success isn’t “one thing”, and there isn’t one particular factor that determines it. The more successful that you become, the more that your goals change, and your entire concept of success changes with it. You should remember that there are many lies told about success, and try to determine your own meaning of success that fits you life.