Reimagining success on your own terms

Honour your life not just your goals

You’ve climbed a mountain. The first one. You know the one—built on achievement, ambition, proving yourself. Maybe it was a high-powered job, a successful business, or just the feeling of always having something to strive for. You made it to the top—or close enough to see what was up there. And it didn’t feel like you thought it would.

Maybe it felt empty. Maybe you burned out on the way. Or maybe the view just didn’t match the effort it took to get there.

Now, you're standing at the edge of something else. A transition. A shift from “what I was supposed to want” to “what I actually want.” That’s the beginning of the second mountain.

David Brooks writes in The Second Mountain,

“The first mountain is about building up the ego and defining the self. The second mountain is about shedding the ego and losing the self.”

This second mountain is not about status. It’s about meaning. It's about contribution, connection, alignment. It's about living from the inside out, not for the outside in.

So how do you start that climb?

1. Pause Before You Push

You don’t need to scramble up this new mountain the way you did the first. This isn’t a race. This is a reorientation. Give yourself time to rest, reflect, and actually feel what’s true for you now. The next chapter doesn't need to be rushed. Let it emerge.

2. Define Success by Wholeness, Not Hustle

This is your mountain. Your definition. Let go of performative success. Ask: What makes me feel whole? What rhythms support my energy, not deplete it? What kind of impact actually feels good in my body and soul—not just on paper?

3. Reclaim Your Zone of Genius

You’re not starting from scratch. You’ve gathered skills, instincts, insights. What comes naturally to you, even if you’ve never been paid for it? What do people seek you out for? That’s your genius. Not what you can do, but what you do with soul.

4. Let Simplicity Lead

You likely have a head full of ideas and a heart full of hope. Start with one thing. Choose the idea that feels light, aligned, doable. Let it be imperfect. Let it grow slowly. This isn’t about scaling. This is about sustaining.

5. Find Your People

One of the hardest parts of this shift is how isolating it can feel. You’re no longer in the same conversations you used to be in—and you haven’t quite found your new ones yet. Seek out people who are on this second mountain too. People who care about meaning over metrics. Share the process.

6. Protect Your Energy Like It Matters—Because It Does

You’ve burned out before. You’ve overgiven, overworked, and overridden your own limits. Not again. This time, build in boundaries from the beginning. Build with rest, not just resilience. Make space for joy without guilt.

7. Let This Be a Return, Not a Reinvention

You’re not broken. You’re not lost. You’re returning to yourself. To the version of you that’s been there all along—quietly waiting under the noise. This second mountain is not about becoming someone new. It’s about becoming more you.

You're not at the end. You’re at a beginning. A different kind of climb. One rooted in purpose, led by soul, and carried out at a pace that honours your life—not just your goals.