A weekly newsletter delivered to your inbox every Thursday. Practical tips and insights to thrive in both, without compromising one or the other. Learn research-based strategies for sustaining energy, focus, and fulfillment from the inside out. Success shouldn't cost you your well-being.
The step wasn’t scary. The story was.
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The Danger of Living in Draft Mode I used to live in draft mode. For me, it showed up in my career. I had a goal I desperately wanted to achieve. But I kept it to myself. Because if I gave that goal breath, it would feel real.
Because what if I got there and wasn’t enough? So I stayed in draft mode. It felt safe, but it was heavy. When I finally moved forward, it was a single step: I told my boss. I shared my goal, how I thought I could get there, and I asked for support. And here’s what happened: We had an amazing conversation. He showed me the areas I needed to grow in, including some I hadn’t even considered. And once it was out in the open, everything changed. Within a few years, I had been promoted multiple times. Here’s what I’ve learned: Life in draft mode is exhausting. The story in your head grows scarier than the step in front of you. And most of the time, the moment you finally move… If you’re reading this and thinking about your own draft…
Do one thing: Take a real step. Life doesn’t reward drafts. This is the exact kind of shift I help high performers make inside The Shift Sequence — moving from hidden goals and quiet resistance to clarity, aligned action, and real results. 📌 Learn more about The Shift Sequence But even if we never talk, remember this: The story is always scarier than the step. Stay Curious and Lead A Life of Purpose, John |
The High Performance Paradox
A weekly newsletter delivered to your inbox every Thursday. Practical tips and insights to thrive in both, without compromising one or the other. Learn research-based strategies for sustaining energy, focus, and fulfillment from the inside out. Success shouldn't cost you your well-being.
You don’t care. At least not in the way you tell yourself you do. That sounds harsh, but stay with me. Most people do not lack intelligence or ambition. They do not even lack insight. What they lack is honesty with themselves. Beliefs and behaviors are shaped by many things. Environment. Stress. Expectations. But underneath all of that, something else is doing most of the work. Standards. James Clear said, “You do not rise to the level of your goals. You fall to the level of your systems.” I...
I spent years working toward my doctorate. The work was intense. The vision was clear. The assumption was simple: once I crossed that finish line, everything would shift. Instead, I submitted the final paper, waited for the feeling, and nothing happened. No rush. No pride. Just silence. I wasn’t burned out. I wasn’t lost. I had just expected the moment to change something it wasn’t built to touch. I didn’t sit with it. I did what I always do. I moved on. What’s next? What’s the next thing to...
The Disease of Over-Potential When I first started climbing the ladder, I was all in. Ambitious. Energized. Obsessed with doing the work. But the higher I climbed, the heavier it felt. It wasn’t burnout from working too hard. It was something else. I was moving. But it felt like someone had their hand on the emergency brake. Meetings that didn’t matter. Office politics I didn’t respect. Squirrels everywhere. Every drama, every opinion, every distraction begging for my energy. And I gave it....