Myth: Success will finally feel good once you reach the next level

This week I’d like to share a little story with you to illustrate another myth. 

A woman I know very well had just been promoted to head up an entire division for her company. The role she'd been working toward for several years. Team of 50 people. Budget authority she'd never had before.

Six weeks into the new position, she called me sounding exhausted.

"Laura, I thought this would be my moment. I thought I'd finally feel like I'd made it. But honestly? I feel more lost than ever. The imposter syndrome is worse, the pressure is crushing, and I keep thinking there has to be more to success than this."

This moment perfectly captures one of the biggest myths we tell ourselves about success.

We believe that success will finally feel good once we reach the next level.

How many times have you told yourself some version of this story:

"Once I get that promotion, I'll feel confident."

"When I hit six figures, I'll finally relax."

"After I lead this major project, I'll prove my worth."

"When I get recognized as an expert, I'll stop doubting myself."

We've turned happiness into a destination. A reward we'll unlock after we've jumped through enough hoops, climbed high enough, and achieved enough.

But what I've learned after 30,000+ interviews with successful professionals: If it doesn't feel good now, it won't feel good "there."

The Pattern That Never Breaks

I see this pattern everywhere. The director who thought becoming head of the department would bring fulfillment, only to discover they missed the hands-on work they used to love. The manager who believed leading the biggest team would prove their leadership skills, only to find themselves drowning in administrative tasks. The specialist who thought getting recognized as the "go-to expert" would boost their confidence, only to realize the pressure to be perfect all the time was overwhelming.

Each level brings its own challenges, its own emptiness, its own version of "Is this all there is?"

Because the truth is… external achievements can't fill an internal void.

When you're waiting for success to feel good "someday," you're essentially putting your life on hold. You're postponing joy, satisfaction, and fulfillment until some future moment that never quite arrives the way you imagined it would.

What Actually Works

The high-achievers who break this pattern make one simple but profound shift. They stop treating alignment as a reward they'll earn later and start recognizing it as something available right now.

Alignment isn't a trophy you get for climbing high enough. It's not a bonus that comes with the corner office or the six-figure salary.

Alignment is a choice you can make today, in whatever role you're in, with whatever resources you currently have. You decide that you’re enough. You’re enough. You’re worthy. Just as you are.  

It's about showing up authentically in your current position. Leading from your actual values instead of what you think leadership should look like. Making decisions based on what energizes you, not just what impresses others. Being you!

Jennifer's Turning Point

Let me tell you about Jennifer. She was a senior manager who spent three years positioning herself for the director role, convinced that leading the entire division would finally make her feel like she'd "arrived."

When she got the promotion, the initial celebration lasted about two weeks. Then reality set in: endless budget meetings, difficult personnel decisions, less time for the creative work she actually loved.

That's when she came to me, questioning if she'd made a mistake.

Instead of looking for a different rung on the ladder, we worked on something different. We focused on how she could bring more of her authentic leadership style to her current role. We identified what actually energized her about leading people and found ways to structure her time around those core elements, even within her new responsibilities.

The transformation was remarkable. Same position, same challenges, completely different experience. She started feeling the satisfaction she'd been chasing through titles by simply aligning more deeply with her natural way of leading.

Eight months later, she was offered a promotion to regional director. But this time, the opportunity felt like a natural extension of work that was already fulfilling, not a desperate attempt to find validation through a bigger title.

Your Micro-Move This Week

Ready to test this for yourself?

Instead of waiting for the next achievement to bring satisfaction, ask yourself: "What would it look like to find fulfillment in what I'm doing right now?"

RIGHT NOW!

Maybe it's having more authentic conversations with your team. Maybe it's approaching your current projects from your natural strengths instead of what you think is expected. Maybe it's setting boundaries that honor your values, even in your current role.

Try one small experiment in alignment this week. See what shifts when you stop postponing satisfaction until "someday."

Because the truth is….

Success that feels good starts from the inside and works its way out, not the other way around.

You don't need a new job, a bigger title, or a different life to start experiencing fulfillment. You need a new way of showing up in the life you already have. 

The corner office, the salary bump, the recognition, they're all wonderful bonuses. But they're not the source of satisfaction. You are. And the funny thing is, those things do show up once you make the internal move first. 

When you align with who you really are and what genuinely matters to you, success becomes a natural expression of that alignment, not a desperate attempt to feel worthy.

And that kind of success? It feels good. It feels satisfying. It feels like YOU!

Ready to stop chasing satisfaction and start creating it? That shift is available to you right now, right where you are. [Book an Activation Call] and I can help you.

With deep belief in your magnificence, 

Laura

P.S. If you've been telling yourself that happiness is just one more achievement away, you're not alone. So many of us have believed that lie at some point. But what if the life you want is already available to you? What if it's just waiting for you to show up authentically in the life you already have? We're all figuring this out together, one aligned choice at a time.