"The ultimate of being successful is the luxury of giving yourself the time to do what you want to do"

Leontyne Price’s reflection on success reimagines achievement not as an accumulation of wealth or status, but as the profound freedom to choose how one spends their time. For many, the pursuit of success often centers around external markers: awards, salaries, recognition. Yet Price suggests that the greatest reward lies not in these tangibles, but in the quiet autonomy to direct your own hours and energies.

This definition of success upends the conventional narrative. Rather than seeing work solely as a means to an end, a milestone, a trophy, financial security, it emphasizes life’s most finite resource: time. In a world where many feel constrained by obligations, careers, or societal expectations, experiencing the “luxury” of discretionary time becomes rare and precious. It’s not merely about idleness or leisure, but about the ownership of your day: the ability to pursue passions, nurture relationships, or simply pause and reflect. The ultimate success then is not outside validation, but internal satisfaction, manifest in the freedom to align daily actions with personal desires.

Price’s words also gently critique the culture of constant productivity and hustle. Securing the ability to “do what you want to do” may mean choosing rest, creative endeavors, community, or service, none of which are exclusively valued in competitive environments focused on perpetual growth. She implies that true fulfillment comes when external demands no longer dictate life’s course, and when one can heed their own interests without guilt or rush.

Therefore, Price presents success as deeply personal and uniquely defined. The richest luxury is to reclaim one’s time, to be present for the things and people that matter most, and to savor the privilege of shaping one’s destiny. Ultimately, it’s the power of choice, how we spend our time, that embodies real achievement.