Learn Hardcore Russian: Для меня реальный успех — это когда знания не остаются в тетради, а используются в жизни. - For me real success is when knowledge does not stay in a notebook but is used in life.

Для меня реальный успех… = For me, real success is…
Without it (Реальный успех — это…), the sentence sounds more like a general statement or definition, not explicitly marked as personal opinion.

You could also say:

По‑моему, реальный успех — это… – In my opinion, real success is…

Для меня focuses on “in relation to me, from my perspective”, while по‑моему is a more standard “in my opinion”.

Why is there a dash (—) between успех and это?

In Russian, a dash is often used instead of a verb like “is” between the subject and its definition:

Реальный успех — это когда… ≈ Real success is when…

The pattern is:

[noun] — это [explanation / definition]

The dash:

makes the structure clearer,
replaces the missing verb “to be” in the present tense.

You can sometimes see it without a dash in informal writing, but with the dash is standard and very natural here.

Why do we say реальный успех — это когда… instead of just реальный успех — когда…? What does это do?

The word это works like a linking word meaning roughly “is” / “is what we call” and makes the definition sound more natural and complete:

Реальный успех — это когда…
Literally: Real success – this is when…

Without это:

Реальный успех — когда знания…

is still understandable, and some people might say it in speech, but it sounds a bit incomplete or less smooth. Russian likes the pattern:

X — это Y

especially when you’re giving a definition or personal formula for something.

Is it grammatically okay in Russian to say “X — это когда…”, like “Real success is when…”? I’ve heard some languages avoid this.

Yes, in spoken and informal written Russian it’s very common and completely natural to say:

Реальный успех — это когда…
Счастье — это когда…
Любовь — это когда…

Some style guides say that in very formal, academic writing you should avoid “X — это когда…” and instead define things with a noun phrase, e.g.:

Реальный успех — это использование знаний в жизни, а не их сохранение в тетради.

But in everyday speech, teaching materials, blogs, etc., “X — это когда…” is absolutely fine and very idiomatic.

Why is знания in the plural, when in English “knowledge” is singular and uncountable?

In Russian, знание (singular) is usually “a piece of knowledge” or a more abstract “knowledge” in some contexts, but:

знания (plural) is the normal word for “knowledge” in general, especially in the sense of what you have learned (school knowledge, skills, facts).

So:

У него хорошие знания. – He has good knowledge / He knows a lot.
знания не остаются в тетради – your knowledge (everything you’ve learned) does not stay in the notebook.

Using the plural знания is the standard, natural way to talk about someone’s knowledge as a whole.

What is the exact meaning and aspect of остаются? Why not останутся?

Остаются is the 3rd person plural, present tense, imperfective verb оставаться – to remain, to stay (and continue to be there).

знания не остаются в тетради
= knowledge doesn’t (just) stay in the notebook (habitually / generally).

If you used останутся (future, perfective остаться), it would sound more like a one‑time or result-focused event:

знания не останутся в тетради
= (on this one occasion) the knowledge won’t remain in the notebook.

Here the sentence is about a general principle or definition of success, so Russian uses imperfective present to describe a typical, repeated, “how things are” situation.

What is going on with используются? Is this passive? How is it formed?

Yes, используются is a passive form.

The base verb is использовать – to use (imperfective/perfective, depending on context).
The reflexive form использоваться often means to be used.
используются is 3rd person plural, present tense: are used.

So:

знания используются в жизни
≈ knowledge is used in life.

Active equivalent:

Люди используют знания в жизни. – People use knowledge in life.

Russian often forms the present passive with -ся on the verb, especially with verbs like использоваться, продаваться, строиться etc.

Why is it в тетради and в жизни (prepositional) and not в тетрадь / в жизнь (accusative)?

With the preposition в, Russian uses:

Accusative to show motion into / direction:
в тетрадь – into the notebook
в жизнь – into life
Prepositional to show location / “in” a place:
в тетради – in the notebook
в жизни – in life

In this sentence we’re talking about where the knowledge stays or is used, not about moving it somewhere:

не остаются в тетради – do not remain in the notebook (location)
используются в жизни – are used in life (location / sphere of use)

So the prepositional case is correct here.

Why is тетради ending in -и if it is singular “notebook”? It looks like a plural.

Тетрадь is a feminine noun ending in ь (soft sign). These nouns form the prepositional singular with -и:

nominative singular: тетрадь
prepositional singular: в тетради – in the notebook

So тетради here is singular, prepositional, not plural.

Compare:

дочь → о дочери (about the daughter)
ночь → в ночи (in the night)

The plural of тетрадь would be:

nominative plural: тетради – notebooks
prepositional plural: в тетрадях – in (the) notebooks

Context (знания не остаются в тетради) makes it clear we mean singular: “in the notebook”.

Why is the conjunction а used (…в тетради, а используются в жизни), and not но?

Both а and но can mean something like “but”, but they’re used a bit differently.

но = “but” with a strong contrast or objection
а often contrasts two different situations or directions more neutrally, like “whereas / rather / on the other hand”.

Here we have:

не остаются в тетради, а используются в жизни
= they don’t stay in the notebook, but rather are used in life.

We’re not objecting or contradicting something; we’re contrasting two places/uses (notebook vs real life), so а is the natural choice.

If you said …но используются в жизни, it would be understandable, but it would feel a bit heavier and less stylistically smooth.

What does the phrase в жизни really mean here? Literally “in life”? Is this a fixed expression?

Yes, в жизни literally means “in life”, and in this sentence it corresponds well to English “in real life / in everyday life / in practice”.

It’s a very common expression in Russian:

В жизни это сложнее. – In real life it’s harder.
Он в жизни другой, чем в интернете. – He’s different in real life than online.

So используются в жизни means the knowledge is actually applied in real situations, not just kept on paper.

Could we change the order to …когда знания используются в жизни, а не остаются в тетради? Is that more natural?

Yes, that word order is also very natural, and many speakers would say it that way:

Для меня реальный успех — это когда знания используются в жизни, а не остаются в тетради.

This version:

puts the positive, desired situation first (used in life),
then negates the less desirable one (don’t stay in the notebook),
uses а не as a clear “rather than / instead of”.

Both orders are correct and idiomatic; it’s mostly a stylistic choice.

Can we drop реальный and just say Для меня успех — это когда…? What’s the nuance of реальный here?

Yes, you can say:

Для меня успех — это когда знания не остаются в тетради, а используются в жизни.

That would mean simply “success” in general.

Adding реальный (“real”) or настоящий (“genuine, true”) adds nuance:

реальный успех – success that is real, not just apparent or formal,
настоящий успех – often “true, genuine success” (with a bit more emotional colour).

So реальный успех here emphasizes that this is what the speaker considers real success, as opposed to some superficial or conventional idea of success.

Is это absolutely necessary after успех, or can I say Для меня реальный успех — когда знания…?

You can say:

Для меня реальный успех — когда знания не остаются в тетради, а используются в жизни.

Native speakers do say this, especially in speech. It’s understandable and not “wrong”.

However:

…успех — это когда… sounds a bit clearer and more balanced stylistically.
это acts like a little “bridge” between the subject and the clause.

In more careful or written style, успех — это когда… is usually preferred over успех — когда…, but both will be understood.