Success Guilt

Let’s talk about success guilt.  You may become the ‘one’ amongst your circle of friends, social group, colleagues, and even family, that have “made” it, and to your surprise you may feel guilty about it.  Success guilt arises when, despite working hard for all of your achievements and accomplishments, you feel guilty or ashamed about that the fact that those around you have not accomplished as much as you have. 

You may feel obligated to take care of those around you since you have been deemed as the one that is successful, perhaps having a lot of money, a large home, and more.  Being successful means standing out amongst your social group, colleagues, family members and friends.  Of course, you may be in group where all of you are extremely successful, but for the purposes of this article, we are focusing on the idea that one person is much more successful than others in the group. 

Feelings of success guilt may manifest in a multitude of ways such as feeling that you do not deserve everything that you have worked for, feeling as though you are betraying those that you grew up with, feeling obligated to take care of those who are not as successful, and even feeling as though you are not doing enough to help others, even if you participate in philanthropic endeavors. 

I have read stories about siblings for example, where one is extremely successful, and “makes” it, and feels guilty about not supporting his or her siblings.  Or, the siblings may develop an attitude of entitlement, often feeling as though their sibling should be responsible for taking care of them, as well as the rest of the family, since he or she is the one who made it, and perhaps has a lot of money.  They believe they are entitled to live the same kind of life that their successful sibling lives, regardless of their own actions and achievements.   

You must believe and know that you deserve the amazing life that you have built, or are currently building, and that you do not owe anyone anything.  We all have the ability to create the life that we imagine and desire.  To do so however, we must change our mindset and get out of low vibrational thoughts of jealousy and envy.  By the way, be sure to check out my blog article entitled “Jealousy and Envy” by clicking here.  There will always be someone somewhere that has much more than us and that is ok.  However, they are not obligated to give us anything, pay off any debt, and so on.

While there is nothing wrong with helping others, as anyone could fall on hard times, there is a fine line between helping someone get back on their feet, and them feeling entitled to you helping them.  Never allow anyone to make you feel guilty for your success, or to force you into doing anything that you do not want to do.  You first obligation is to yourself, especially your physical and mental health. 

Remember to remind yourself often that you have earned your success through your efforts and sacrifices and take time to self-reflect on your accomplishments.  In my blog article entitled “I Deserve,” I share my poem about how we all deserve the life that we desire.  You deserve to live the life that you want, and never allow anyone to tell you otherwise or make you feel guilty about your success.