To many it would depend on a number of individual circumstantial factors.
In my opinion though people should always not allow themselves to be judged by society's standards, what matters as an artist is what YOU are satisfied and content with, some artists would be delighted to sell 50 thousand records if you came from nowhere with no-one hearing your shyt. Don't let society define you, define yourself and judge based on YOUR perception of success, this can greatly differ depending on individuals. But artists don't get caught up in that shyt, make your art, sell as much as you can but don't make anybody make you feel bad cause you're not platinum first week, especially in this era, that doesn't mostly translate into lesser or greater quality music/art anyway. So just do your absolute best and in many ways that's success in itself, to do something you love to the best of your ability and have people hearing your music, expressing yourself and making money off it. Set your own expectations and goals but keep going forward after you reach them or keep striving till you do.
