When I was younger, success seemed to mean achieving something big. A career that looked impressive on paper, a decent salary, a car you could show off, nice clothes, holidays away. Growing up in the 80s, you absorbed the idea that success was all about the visible markers—what you owned and the lifestyle you could afford.

My understanding of success has changed over the years. One of the things that helped change it was Ashtanga yoga.

When I first started practising, I was drawn to the more impressive postures. There was something satisfying about the idea of mastering a difficult pose, of reaching a point where I could do something that had once seemed impossible.

But yoga gradually taught me to appreciate a different kind of progress. Some mornings, you notice that you can fold a little deeper into a forward bend. A posture that once felt uncomfortable becomes a little easier. The improvements are often so small that you might not notice them from one day to the next, but over time they add up.

These days, success can mean something much more modest. Being comfortable in the most basic of postures. Managing to practise for a whole week without having to take a day off because of a sore knee or wrist. Sometimes, simply turning up on the mat is a success in itself.

I've come to recognise a similar pattern in my English classes.

Take a student who recently told me about a situation during a trip abroad when she had to use English. She didn't understand everything, and she couldn't express everything she wanted to say. In the past, she would have panicked. This time, however, she remained calm and managed the situation. Far from a perfect conversation—but she didn't freeze. To me, that's the real shift.

Another student asked me to evaluate her English for her boss. When she first started taking lessons, she was reluctant to attempt explanations, particularly when the subject was complicated. Now, she can explain some very complex situations from her work. There are still grammatical mistakes, and she doesn't always find exactly the right words, but her willingness to communicate has grown enormously. That growing confidence is a success.

Then there was a student who used to just answer my questions, never asking any of her own. Recently, we had the loveliest conversation. It felt natural and unforced, with questions and answers flowing in both directions. We weren't simply working through a lesson any more. We were having a conversation. That, too, was a kind of progress worth celebrating.

Of course, learning a language takes time, and it can be difficult to see how much progress you're making when you're in the middle of it. But success doesn't always arrive as a dramatic breakthrough. Sometimes it is a little more confidence when speaking to a stranger, the ability to explain something that once seemed too difficult, or the moment you realise that a conversation has become easier than it would have been a few months ago.

Simply finding the time to log in and take a lesson is an achievement in itself. So is finding a few minutes to look back at the feedback from a previous lesson. Perhaps you remember an expression you learned a week or two ago and use it in today's conversation. Perhaps you hear a word in a television programme and recognise it because you studied it that morning. These moments can be easy to overlook, but they are signs that something is taking root.

These days, I don't care much about grand destinations. We don't need a breakthrough posture or flawless English to prove we're moving forward.

Success is just rolling out the mat, turning up to class, and noticing that today hurt a little less than yesterday.

Learning Support

Vocabulary and Expressions

1. Come of age
To reach adulthood, or to experience the period when your ideas and values are developing.
Example: Coming of age in the 80s, I associated success with financial security and material possessions.

2. Be drawn to something
To feel attracted to something or naturally interested in it.
Example: When I started yoga, I was drawn to the more challenging postures.

3. Master something
To learn to do something very well, usually through practice and experience.
Example: It takes time and patience to master a difficult skill.

4. Add up over time
To gradually produce a significant result through small changes or repeated efforts.
Example: Even small improvements in pronunciation add up over time.

5. Turn up
To arrive somewhere or make yourself available, especially when doing so requires effort or commitment.
Example: You don't have to perform brilliantly every day. Sometimes, success means simply turning up.

6. Be reluctant to do something
To be unwilling or hesitant to do something.
Example: She was initially reluctant to speak English in meetings, but she has become much more confident.

7. A breakthrough
An important development or achievement that helps you overcome a difficulty or make significant progress.
Example: Being able to explain the problem clearly in English felt like a real breakthrough.

8. Overlook something
To fail to notice or give sufficient attention to something.
Example: We sometimes overlook the small improvements we make every day.

9. Take root
To become established or develop gradually, often without being immediately noticeable.
Example: New vocabulary takes time to take root and become part of our everyday English.

10. A sense of achievement
A feeling of satisfaction that comes from accomplishing something worthwhile.
Example: Completing a full week of practice gives me a real sense of achievement.

Useful Phrases from the Column

• Over the years: during a period of several years.
Example: My priorities have changed considerably over the years.

• From one day to the next: when comparing one day with another.
Example: Progress can be difficult to notice from one day to the next.

• In itself: considered separately, without anything else being necessary.
Example: Finding time to practise regularly is an achievement in itself.

• In the middle of something: while an activity or process is still happening.
Example: When you're in the middle of learning a language, it can be difficult to see how far you've progressed.

• In both directions: moving or happening between two sides or people, rather than only one way.
Example: A good conversation involves listening and asking questions in both directions.

• Less about A and more about B: used to contrast two priorities or ways of thinking.
Example: Success is less about being perfect and more about making steady progress.