How do you know when you’ve made it?
Does “made it” mean things like…
Being on some stage?
A “comma” (or two) revenue month?
Landing a dream client?
The big house or luxury car?
The award?
That’s what it used to mean to me.
I had all of that on October 4, 2014. I suppose it “should” have meant that I made it.
Yet that day started as one of the darkest of my journey.
It was the day I thought, “This is NOT what I thought success would feel like.”
It was the day I wondered, “When will I stop feeling guilty and ashamed for losing my lucrative job two years ago?”
It was the day I reached out to the Velvet Hammer (her title in my book) for guidance: what was I doing wrong? What more did I need to do?
Her response stopped my world mid-spin: “You weren’t made to work this way. You don’t know who you are or WHOSE you are. Do you personally know Jesus?”
That was the moment I knew I’d made it…to the end of myself. To the realization that I could not, and was not made to, carry all of this alone. To the reality that my self-reliance and pride had given me outward success with inward emptiness.
And to the truth that the hole I’d been trying to fill by chasing achievement, accolades, and dollars couldn’t be filled with those things because it was a Jesus-shaped hole.
I’d made it to His feet, where everything changed. And continues to change as I let Him define and direct me. As I put my obedience into action with discipline. As He continues to develop me.
Today, as I celebrate the dream clients He’s given me, the 25,000 downloads of my podcast, the stage opportunities to teach high-achieving women how to redefine hustle, I am still a work in progress. I am grateful to have His daily guidance, along with my own coach, and the mastermind membership that gives me a community of peers.
So here’s my coaching for you if you’re struggling here:
Spend time with the Lord asking “Lord, show me where I think I’ve made it, but I haven’t done it at your feet and with your direction.” Then get quiet and listen.
Because only He can fill that void, and when you come to His feet, you’ll know you’ve made it!
Remember friend: God made you ambitious, but He didn’t make you to work the world’s way. As you cast out your nets, do so by tuning out the world, tuning into God’s truth, and turning up focus. He gave you a mission in the marketplace – don’t’ let overwhelm and overachievement stall your work for His glory!
I pray this speaks to you and your situation today. If you found this helpful, share it with a friend, and let me know with a DM on LinkedIn @erinharrigan or Instagram @erindharrigan
If your outward success is warring with your faith and priorities, I hear you. I see you. And it doesn’t have to be this way. God made you to be ambitious, but He didn’t make you to work the world’s way. I’m the coach that can help you break free from business as usual! Schedule a call to explore working with me: https://erinharrigan.com/discoverycall
Erin Harrigan is a Christian wife, empty nest mom, speaker, author, and business coach for high-achieving female believers who seek to refine or scale their 6-7 figure revenue businesses and align business goals with Biblical truth to work with clarity, serenity and fulfillment.
Bringing to bear her 30+ years of corporate work and 10+ years of network marketing, she helps female believers break free from the drain of “business as usual” by aligning business strategy and goals to God’s truth. She does this through her customized business coaching, speaking, her award-winning podcast, Redefining Hustle: Pursuing Success as a Christian Woman, and her book Pursuing Success God’s Way: A Practical Guide to Hustle with Heart.
Erin loves the beach, tacos, good cheese, red wine, singing along to Broadway show tunes, and living in Chesapeake Beach, MD with her husband Brian and their Bernedoodle, Rory.
