The True Measure of Success: It’s How You Feel, Not What You Do
Redefining Success After Leaving the Corporate World By Pursuing Inner Peace and Fulfillment in Entrepreneurship
Tomorrow I’m embarking on a five-week journey that will surely shift the trajectory of my life. A project that’s so near and dear to my heart that my eyes swell up with tears every time I envision the experience that’s waiting for me.
I’ll be assisting as a facilitator at Camp Sleepawake (a month-long immersive camp for 18-27 year olds, that I wrote about in my last post).
Imagine how different your life would be if, at the age of 18, you were immersed in a month-long experience teaching topics such as emotional intelligence, nervous system regulation, emotional release, sacred sexuality, allowing pleasure, relationship skills, healthy eating, connecting with the land, and movement as medicine.
If I’d had these skills a decade a go, my nervous system would’ve been so much more equipped to navigate the chaos of a pandemic, the depths of depression, and the intensity of the anxiety I felt in my early twenties.
It’s an honor that my life’s work is intertwining with a group of several dozen twenty-something year olds for an entire month. And with this new chapter approaching, I’m coming to terms with new perspectives on what success truly means in my life’s work.
Redefining success was inspired by re-discovering my journal pages from when I left Salesforce three years ago.
When I first left my corporate job, I’d pushed myself towards revenue goals of six-figure course launches, and felt pressure around how I was branding myself.
For so many moments during my early entrepreneurship journey, I’d believed I hadn’t accomplished enough, that I was behind schedule, and that I needed to achieve more to build credibility.
But my relationship to what success looked like has shifted — from the numbers driven “hustle culture” of the corporate world, to experiencing the peace that comes from watching a clients nervous system come back into homeostasis, or the awe of realizing that both of our lives are changing for the better right in front of our eyes.
I’ve learned that success is measured by how I feel, not by what I do.
At the core of the most common desires in life — such as financial security, recognition, and meaningful relationships — lies a deeper quest for emotional states like belonging, peace, and fulfillment. These underlying emotional needs drive our pursuit of success and shape our ultimate goals.
While this message may seem obvious to some, truly embodying it has been a journey for me of learning to seeing success as:
Waking up excited for my work day, without an alarm.
Feeling energized by every event on my full calendar.
Hearing about the impact of months spent coaching a client, and smiling from ear to ear as they say ‘We’ve had so many transformational moments in every session, that it’s hard to capture one moment when all of them change the trajectory of my fucking life.’
These are my new markers of success, not the revenue targets or performance metrics I’d once valued.
There will certainly be more clients to serve, future programs, and workshops I feel called to create, but if I can’t appreciate how far I’ve come, what’s the point?
So, I’ll share a few things I’ve been up to that are bringing me deep fulfillment and a sense of internal pride:
I felt a sense of expansion and nervousness as my husband and I completed a 30-day experiment exploring sexual intimacy in our marriage, and as we published our first piece of writing about sex and relationships! Not enough people discuss navigating sex in partnership, yet so many struggle in silence. We're choosing to open up the conversation and share our learnings along the way. Here’s the link: 30-Day Sex Container: A Deep Dive into Sexual Intimacy.
I felt masterful and wholehearted compassion as we dually coached a couple on their romantic partnership. They were the first 2-2 coaching clients we’ve served in our home, and came to us struggling to navigate avoidant attachment. We explored the moment the connection got dropped, and guided them through a somatic reassurance tool that repairs secure attachment when it’s used as a practice over time. It was gorgeous to witness.
I felt fulfilled and deeply connected to Edmond as we co-led a somatic journey together while facilitating a curated Desire workshop in Boulder. We were guiding individuals to embody their desires related to sex, money, and power. Our approach shared a tool that blends NLP, emotional resolution, and insights from plant medicine. It enabled participants to confront both fear and desire, expanding their capacity to embrace their desires while navigating fear. By doing so, they could break free from the self-sabotaging pattern of spiraling into fear and could access more enjoyment.
During the previous month, I felt grounded and grateful for the opportunity to teach students at UC Berkeley Integrated Studies about emotional resolution and somatic healing. Together, we delved into the belief of feeling "stuck" by immersing ourselves in the somatic experience of it. Through a process of welcoming the avoided emotions, often encompassing fear, anxiety, or worry, we allowed the sensations to flow within the body. This practice facilitated a restoration of freedom from feeling stuck, so they could access internal wisdom and take action.
And I have been feeling SO ALIVE since officially launching my coaching offering. I have come to realize that regardless of how busy life gets — whether I'm on vacation, hosting guests, or feeling tired from my menstrual cycle — coaching is truly life-giving. It has become a source of inspiration that fuels my creativity and instills a profound sense of purpose within me. Coaching brings a grounded sense of peace to my body, as I trust in the wisdom that flows through the session. It feels so right.
Amongst all of this, there is a spaciousness to my day-to-day and I’m feeling more harmonious than ever in collaborating with Edmond. That’s how I know I’m successful.
Ultimately, success means feeling at peace, not pushing for productivity.
As I embark on this transformative journey at Sleepawake, I hold a deep understanding that external achievements alone cannot define my success. Instead, I prioritize the state of my inner being, recognizing that the feeling of fulfillment and contentment serves as the true measure of my personal success.
p.s. I’m opening up five new coaching slots starting in July next month, and I just opened up applications! If you know someone who might resonate with my style, please share this post.
You can see what other clients said about working with me, and apply on my website.