This Diagnosis Surprised Me
In early 2023, a fellow coach diagnosed me with something I'd never heard of before: success intolerance.
Success intolerance is discontinuing something that's working after experiencing success due to an inability to accept the success.
Success intolerance won't kill us, but it will kill our dreams.
My brain didn’t feel comfortable with the progress of Dana Byers Coaching, so I nearly pushed the ejector seat on my business acceleration ride.
...Yikes! I literally stopped and took a deep breath after typing out these words for you just now.
I haven't published this note, yet I already feel the discomfort and vulnerability of admitting exactly what happened: I almost self-sabotaged my own dream.
I also feel the power of accepting my non-conscious choice, picking up the pieces, and getting back to this work that I love.
I said it was a non-conscious choice because I don't believe I'd have backed off so quickly on things when success scared me. I didn't see what I was doing for what it was: hesitation and fear.
But didn't you get exactly what you wanted, Dana?
Yes, yes I did. It was all coming together. And after years of wanting to see a venture like this work out, I got spooked.
Everything I wanted to happen was happening! New clients, increased excellence and experience in coaching, more revenue, more earnings to give away to causes I care about.
I'm sharing this with you because I think a lot...a lot...of women do this without realizing it.
We're single, meet a great guy, and reject him when things seem too good to be true.
We go down a pants size and begin snacking when we aren't hungry due to stress or anxiety about maintaining progress in our health journey.
We get a promotion at work and we quit showing up with energy, thinking the promotion was a mistake. We don't want to rock the boat.
So long as our motive is pure, living out the desires God's placed on our hearts isn't something to fear.
When we start experiencing the thing we desire, we must be careful not to despise that desire.
The problem? Despising our desires and self-sabotaging our success is allowed because you and I operate in free will. If we're not careful, we will lose the progress we were so focused on gaining.
Personally, I shifted my fear about success over to a focus on making sure I don't experience the regret of not trying.
I got help and accountability on maintaining the level of success I had so I could fight the impending imposter syndrome. Once I gained a sense of comfort and belief in my new level of progress, I took some more risks to advance further.
And so it can be with you.
You can hold the line when you face success intolerance. You can stay the course without burnout or sliding back into your previous identity.
Here's to your success,
Dana "that was awkward but I'm glad I shared it" Byers
