Whether you are a “first,” the first in your family to go to college, earn six or seven figures, or launch a startup or creative venture, or you grew up in a family culture that prized achievement, you’ve likely discovered that with each success, your life satisfaction and connection to others is trending downward.
Now, while on paper, it looks like you’ve achieved a lot (because you have!), it’s hard not to feel like achievement has been hollow because as you’ve worked harder, you’ve also worked meaning, connection, (and wellbeing!) to the sidelines of your life.
I understand this struggle because I’ve experienced it first hand, and despite all of my accomplishments, I reached a point where my achievements felt hollow and I felt squished by my own life and the choices I continued to make.
And as a mindful leadership coach and educator, I know that so many leaders who are also high achievers or “first to’s” eventually reach this discontented place where they need to find new meaning metrics and reconnect back to what matters. And it’s the kind of thing where they can’t go at it alone – because what got them into this messy situation isn’t the same thing that will release them and get them out.
