I hope this letter finds you seeing clearly how your success and courage go together.

May you live like Taylor Phinney.

Taylor Phinney is a very talented, 29-year-old, professional cyclist for those who may not be into professional cycling. He’s also the child of two very famous cyclists, Olympic gold medalist Connie Carpenter, and Olympic medalist Davis Phinney.

Taylor Phinney quit professional cycling in 2019. I want to share with you what he wrote about quitting his lifelong career.

“I’m grateful that people would like to see me do amazing things on a bicycle. But the reality is, being touted as something, having talent, or being told that you have talent… Talent is nothing without work ethic, and work ethic comes from a genuine passion for what you’re doing. And if you are constantly forcing your work ethic because your passion is elsewhere, then potential and talent mean nothing.

And if there’s anything that I can take away from the sport of cycling, it’s that you can be as talented as you want, but if you don’t wake up every morning and you don’t want that thing, it doesn’t matter.

I think that there’s a lot of power in recognizing that you don’t have the genuine passion for what you’re doing anymore. And then having the courage to make that choice to make that decision when you’re so deep in it. I feel like I’ve been basically preparing for this for a while now, cultivating the ability to voice my honest opinion and say: I think I don’t want this anymore.”

Last night on a call I was leading, one of my students was sharing that, after a weekend of being with family, including some family members she hadn’t seen in twenty years, she was feeling “less than” and disappointed that she hadn’t taken her life anywhere “notable”.

She didn’t mention that she has stepped into her power over the past year.

She’s found her voice, and she’s more ready to be seen and heard in her life than she has in a long time. She is experiencing success.

We gauge success and accomplishment by metrics like our weight, how much money we’ve made, or the house we’ve owned. In this day and age, it’s time to redefine success and achievement. We need to be looking at success through a much different lens than we have in the last several hundred years.

What if the measure of your success is actually your courage – your willingness – to voice your honest opinion, to tell the powerful truth about who you are, what you want, and even the frustration that your life is no longer in sync with your authentic self?

What if the REAL purpose of your life is not to not do the things you do after you’ve stood in your Truth, but to get to that moment when you find your voice? Isn’t that success?

What if every precious decision, experience, and old narrative you tell has led you to this, the moment when you stand up and claim and then defend your value in the world?

Please take some time today and honor yourself and your journey. Do not discount who you are and the passion that has brought you to this journey of self-discovery and self-awareness.

Please check out this free class, Changing Your Value Story, if you want some support.

You deserve to celebrate your very existence as a success.

From my Heart to yours,

Karen

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