This post is an excerpt from The Significance Project. If this resonates with you, I’d love for you to be part of the community..
You can sign up here.
When Success and Significance build something real—together.
Part 5: There comes a point in a high-achieving life when the question isn’t, “What else can I do?”
It’s– “What kind of life do I want all of this to add up to?”
You’ve built incredible things.
You’ve led, produced, grown, achieved.
And let’s be clear: We need that.
We need people who are willing to build, to carry weight, to activate their ambition in service of something real.
But here’s what I see over and over again—
There’s a moment when even the most accomplished among us hit a space that feels… unmarked.
A strange little gap. A drop off the edge of the well-paved sidewalk.
A kind of pause that doesn’t come with a roadmap or a job title.
It’s not failure.
It’s not burnout.
It’s development.
As Jung noted, in the second half of life (developmentally speaking), we’re not as interested in acquisition as we are in integration.
Not in playing the game harder—but in making the game matter.
And here’s where things get interesting:
Success still has a seat at the table.
We’re not firing her.
She’s got energy. Strategy. Drive. She builds things. Moves things. Funds things.
We want her in the room.
But Significance gets a seat now too.
She brings perspective. Presence. Soul.
She doesn’t want to scale everything. She wants to root it.
She wants to make sure we’re building something we can live in—not just present.
And the opportunity—the invitation—is not to toggle between them.
It’s to let them co-create your next season.
This is what integration looks like.
Not a compromise.
A collaboration.
Success brings fire.
Significance brings depth.
Together, they produce something enduring—something that feeds you as much as it feeds the world.
And when you let these parts of you finally speak to each other—not in opposition, but in partnership—
you stop striving in ways that drain you.
You start building in ways that feel like truth.
That’s the shift.
And it changes everything.
A Moment for Significance
Ask yourself:
- What parts of me have I kept in separate rooms?
- Where is there tension between what I’m producing and what I actually value?
- What would it look like to lead in a way that feeds me and the world at the same time?
This isn’t the end of your ambition.
It’s the beginning of your alignment.
Love + The Life Only You Can Build,
Jen
PS- If you’re ready to live in the space where Success and Significance are finally on the same team—
If you’re craving the integration that brings aliveness, clarity, and real contribution—
Let’s build that life, together.
Jen Karofsky | Thought Partner & Coach for Visionary Leaders & Significance Seekers
Jen Karofsky collaborates with leaders who are ready to disrupt the status quo and craft a life of legacy, deep connection, and purposeful impact. Through intentional coaching and bold thought partnership, Jen helps you align your work, your values, and your vision to create transformational change in your world.
Join The Significance Project to redefine success and step into your power.
Join
The Significance Project
My monthly(ish) newsletter for the tools, tips and provocations you need to live your life of significance.
More on the BLG:
I AM HERE FOR THE GRAPPLERS
Explore the unique challenges and triumphs of ambitious leaders who embrace both personal and professional growth. Learn how “The Significance Project” helps leaders transform all aspects of their lives, not just their careers. Dive into our insights on holistic growth and discover how you can become a grappler, a warrior in your own life journey.
Beyond Either/Or: How Holding Tension Creates Transformation
The tyranny of either/or follows us everywhere. Through career pivots, relationship crossroads, and those 2 a.m. moments when we wonder if the life we’re living is still the one we meant to live.
But what if the most meaningful breakthroughs don’t come from choosing sides at all?
The Quiet Abdication: On Guilt, Sovereignty, and the Slow Return of Authorship
Many leaders mistake guilt for goodness. This essay explores how we hand over authorship of our lives—and how reclaiming it becomes the foundation for significance.
When Focus Becomes a Standard: The Hidden Key to Living with Intention
When focus becomes a standard, life shifts from scattered attention to intentional presence. Learn how standards—not productivity hacks—shape the person you’re becoming.
Recent Comments