My most unhappy periods in my career have been when I let my ego control my emotions.
Ego leads to comparison – and we all know the quote “comparison is the thief of joy.”
The problem with comparison is you are always way more successful than someone… and less successful than others.
Depending on the comparison you make, you’ll end up either arrogant or depressed.
Neither of those emotions lead to happiness.
I remember being an AE1. I compared myself to more senior reps – it seemed the AE3s had it made. They had a much higher salary, most of them drove nicer cars, it seemed to be the ideal role.
As an AE3, I looked at the OTE of an AE5 and thought, “That’s so much money – if I get there, I’m going to buy a new car, and life will be great!”
For the first several years of my career, happiness, success, and fulfillment were always just one or two promotions away.
Every time I reached the level I had previously identified as a “peak,” I decided I still needed more.
What a garbage way to live.
In my defense, I wasn’t guilty of a unique perspective. The “one promotion away” mentality is a common mindset.
The first company I worked for was acquired for $8 billion. A lot of people made a lot of money. And a lot of those people felt like they should have made more.
The people that made $500,000 compared themselves to those that made $1,000,000. “That’s so much money, and I’m just as valuable as them.”
The people that made around $1,000,000 compared themselves to the ones that made multiple millions.
The ones that made multiple millions compared themselves to the ones that made 10s of millions.
The same people that were being looked at by others as “making so much money” were looking at the ones that made more.
It reminds me of the results of a study where high net worth individuals were asked “How much is enough?”
Individuals with $3 million said $6 million was enough. At $6 million, the answer was $12 million.
No matter the level, “enough” was always twice as much as they had.
Regardless of current level of success, many people are running an endless race they’ll never win.
No matter how much success, money, and accolades they earn, they’ll never have enough. All these people are running an endless race they’ll never win.
I forget who taught me this, but I’ll never forget it:
“If you aren’t happy in your current role, you won’t be happy in the next.”
If you are miserable as a mid-market AE, that enterprise promotion isn’t going to change your life.
Your struggles with anxiety, stress, and pressure as a sales manager won’t disappear when you promote to director.
And if you aren’t finding fulfillment and joy as a VP, a CRO title isn’t going to fix a thing.
Don’t worry about always getting more. Instead, find gratitude and joy in what you already have.
Otherwise, you’ll never have enough.
