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Overcoming the Trap Of Success

by Mike Kim Leave a Comment

People used to call me [fill in occupation]. People now call me [fill in occupation].

I’ve always called myself Mike.

Remembering Mike—essentially WHO I am and not WHAT I am—has always kept me grounded. It’s kept me myself, even when wearing many hats. I’ve worn many hats in my life, but they’ve largely remained hats. They were roles or offices, not my identity. It’s why I’ve never had much trouble letting go.

That said, a funny thing happens when some of those hats bring you what the world calls “success.” Success makes the head that fits the hat…bigger. Efforts are made to perpetuate the ever increasing size of said head and hat, and voila–people now relegate you to the category of someone whose “success has gone to their head.”

What a paradox success is!

I suppose I’ve had a measure of success in life. Doing what, I’m still not sure. I still can’t tell you what I want to be when I grow up. Perhaps it’s the dreamer in me; perhaps it’s the dreamer in you, too.

What I can tell you is that any success I’ve had has always made me realize how easily I could be trapped in it. If you do anything well enough to do a long time, you’ll do it long enough to plateau. Here are a few things on how I’ve overcome the trap of success:

  1. Unlearn to learn.
  2. Work smarter, not harder.
  3. Simply add value to people.

Being willing to do what you’re under-qualified for is what qualifies you.

Question:  What ways have you become stuck by your own success?

If you liked this post, check out:

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Filed Under: Blog, Leadership, Productivity

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Mike Kim
Personal brand strategist and author of the Wall Street Journal & USA Today Bestseller, You Are the Brand.

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