UIP ep 010
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[00:00:00] Welcome back to Unapologetically In Power where we remove masks. We didn't realize we were wearing and stepped into our authentic power. I am your host, Jennifer Damaskos, and today we're confronting the most relentless and socially rewarded mask of all the overachiever. This is episode 10 of how to unlearn who you had to be, and if you've ever achieved everything you thought you wanted only to feel empty at the top.
This one's going to shift something profound. Do you know the feeling of always striving, always hustling, yet never quite feeling successful enough? Welcome to the modern overachievers business life. It's not just about working hard anymore. It is about optimizing everything, tracking [00:01:00] every metric, hitting every milestone, and still feeling like you're falling behind.
The overachiever in business looks like obsessing over follower accounts, engagement rates, and conversion percentages. Setting aggressive growth targets that keep moving higher every quarter. Comparing your month one to someone else's year 10. Building a business that impresses others but doesn't fulfill you achieving your dream goals only to immediately set bigger ones.
I see this pattern with my clients. It's the entrepreneur who hits six figures, but immediately feels behind because others are at seven. The expert who gets featured in major publications but focuses on who got the cover story. Instead, the coach who builds a thriving practice but can't enjoy it because she's always plotting the next level.
Here's what research from Dr. Tal, Ben [00:02:00] Shahar reveals. Chronic overachieving, while socially praised is often internally corrosive, it creates what he calls achievement addiction. Where your sense of worth becomes entirely dependent on external validation and constant progress. So here's what the overachiever mask costs you in business decision fatigue.
You're constantly optimizing instead of operating, tweaking instead of creating, measuring instead of meaning making. The comparison trap, your worth becomes relative to other success instead of rooted in your own values and vision. The goalposts moving every achievement becomes a stepping stone to the next level.
Instead of something to celebrate and build upon burnout cycle, you can't sustain the pace you think success requires. Leading to crashes that [00:03:00] make you question everything. Imposter syndrome, no amount of achievement. Feels like enough proof that you belong where you are. So let me share something personal.
I remember vividly living in metrics, revenue targets, social media growth, speaking opportunities, media mentions. Each accomplishment brought a brief high, followed immediately by the anxiety of what's next. I had to build what looked like a successful business empire, but I couldn't enjoy any of it because I was too busy chasing the next level.
The wake up call came when I realized I was achieving everything I thought I wanted, but enjoying none of it. I had confused motion with progress. Metrics with meaning. Achievement was fulfillment. I was winning a game I didn't even wanna play. And according to Dr. Carol Dweck's research on [00:04:00] Interestic motivation, true satisfaction comes from engaging in the process of growth and creation, not from the external validation of outcomes, but the overachiever mass told me that process was pointless if I didn't produce measurable results.
That journey was weakness. If it didn't lead to achievement, that being was less valuable than doing. And here's the truth about achievement addiction in business. While you're chasing your next milestone, you miss the meaning. In this moment while you're optimizing for growth, you lose connection to purpose.
While you're building for others' approval, you abandon your own vision. The most successful women I know aren't necessarily the highest achievers. They're the ones who've learned to define success on their own terms. And here's what changes. When you take off the overachiever mask, you start building for fulfillment, not just metrics.
[00:05:00] Your business becomes a vehicle for your values, not just your vanity. We celebrate progress without immediately raising the bar. 'cause each win gets acknowledged before you move to the next goal. You define success internally, not comparatively. 'cause your growth matters more than your ranking. You create sustainable rhythms instead of sprint cycles, and your business supports your life instead of consuming it.
The woman on the other side of Overachievement addiction. She doesn't abandon ambition for mediocracy. She turns achievement into alignment. She sets goals that excite her, not just impress others. She builds businesses that fulfill her, not just fund her. She measures success by satisfaction, not just statistics.
She celebrates the process as much [00:06:00] as the outcome. And you know what? She doesn't become less successful, she becomes more sustainable, more satisfied, and significantly more influential. Because people don't follow achievement addicts, they follow aligned leaders. So to redefine your success metrics, you need to write your own definition of success.
One that includes satisfaction, not just statistics. Practice achievement, appreciation. Before setting your next goals, spend time appreciating what you've already built. Journal about what your current success means to you. Set value-based goals. Your next business goal should align with your values, not just your visibility.
Ask, does this goal serve my vision or my ego? And create celebration rituals. Build specific ways to acknowledge wins before moving to the next milestone. [00:07:00] Here's your power prompt for this week. Complete these sentences. I am chasing blank to prove blank. If I weren't afraid of appearing unambitious, I would blank a goal that would fulfill me, not just impress others would be blank.
Then take one meaningful action set one goal this week purely for your own fulfillment and joy, not for external approval or metrics. Celebrate one achievement you've been taking for granted. Unfollow one account that makes you feel behind instead of inspired. I track this inner work in my five minute journal from Intelligent Change.
It helps me distinguish between achievement driven goals and alignment driven goals. So use Unapologetic 10 for 10% [email protected]. Your worth isn't measured by your achievements. It's not determined by your [00:08:00] metrics. It's not proven by your milestones. It's inherent in your existence and expressed through your authentic contribution.
You are allowed to be satisfied with what you've built before building more. You are allowed to enjoy this level before climbing to the next. You are allowed to rest in your accomplishments instead of racing past them. If this episode stirred something, if you've recognized yourself in the exhaustion of eternal striving, don't keep this insight to yourself.
Hit subscribe so you never miss an episode. Share this with someone who needs permission to enjoy their success. And most importantly, practice appreciation this week. Celebrate what you've built. Acknowledge how far you've come honor the work you're doing right now because the version of you who stops chasing approval and starts living authentically, she doesn't achieve less.[00:09:00]
She enjoys more. This is unapologetically empowered. I'm Jennifer Damaskos, and your permission to be satisfied starts now because your fulfillment driven era begins today.
