Let’s face it. We try to tell ourselves that success is subjective, but we live in a world where success matters a great deal. It's how we deal with it that teaches us about our priorities regarding engagement, connection and even personal happiness.
This happened to me after my book Grow Regardless became a success. In fact, people started looking at me and the company differently after the book became a New York Times best seller. Soon, the success threatened to change the dynamics of the company.
It's true that my book was a real team effort. A writer and several editors helped me with the writing. My entire company put in years of work with our clients, which was the basis for the entire book. Yet, Fox Business and Bloomberg were interested in interviewing only me. I was the one invited to speak at conferences. Professionally, it put me in a different light. Fame had its way with my ego, even if I was constantly questioning whether I’d earned it.
Under these circumstances, it was easy to lose perspective. A stomach infection that I developed in the second half of 2013 is evidence of how the success changed me both physically and mentally. And I realized that I had lost connection, and had disengaged from what was important.
The stomach infection was a gut brain problem. Any solution, or cure, demanded I reconnect with the head brain, which had successfully led me to this major milestone. Eventually, I began to understand that this milestone was merely an early stop on a long journey. And I realized I had let the book's success lead me away from engagement with the people who work with me.
Without the head brain, our team never would’ve come up with a successful game plan to survive in the win-lose environment of publishing. Publishing is a win-lose environment, survival of the fittest, and the head brain’s ability to identify key patterns and data allowed us to come out on top. It would be the head brain that would ultimately learn how to own the success and use it for a greater purpose.
Ready to Shift?
