The Secret to Sustaining Success Long-Term

Our language has wisely sensed the two sides of being alone. It has created the word loneliness to express the pain of being alone. And it has created the word solitude to express the glory of being alone.

— Paul Tillich

As we approach the heart of summer, before the inevitable busyness of fall and winter, now is a great time to reflect on and build your inner character.

The unfortunate truth is that many leaders around us are burning out before they reach the finish line. Corporate executives, non-profit directors, pastors of congregations large and small are falling to crippling addiction, crumbling relationships, and toxic management practices.

The real secret to lasting success is, in fact, no secret at all. Wisdom traditions from the dawn of time have shared roughly the same idea: the real key to consistently accomplishing anything of value is the slow and methodical construction of a strong internal life. In short, it's about your character.

When you have an internal life built on strength, conviction, hope, integrity, and goodness, you have a foundation to sustain success over the long haul — even if it takes longer than had you opted for a less healthy shortcut.

1) You must have a point of reference or source of truth in your life.

We live in the information age. There is more data and raw knowledge available than ever before. This can, of course, be a good thing. But it can also be quite problematic when information leads to paralysis or, perhaps even worse, action that's built on listening to the wrong voices.

Whether it's the Word of God, a school of philosophy, or a rock-solid personal value system, having an unchanging source of truth is essential to building your internal life.

Application: Determine your source of truth and spend time dwelling in it every day. Give this carefully selected source of truth directional and practical authority in your life.

2) You must manage the pace of your life.

Our world is an unthinkably chaotic and fast-paced place. If you allow it to, our society will dictate the pace of your life — and that pace is certain to be unmanageable in the long run. For almost everyone reading this, you'll need to intentionally decrease the speed at which things move. You set the pace of your life, or it will set you.

Application: Identify 2 or 3 specific things or people that are driving the pace of your life in an unhealthy way and create an action plan to make changes.

3) You must build a secret place that contributes to your future success.

Everybody has secret places in their life — moments that are largely hidden from everyone else in the world. Think about how you spend your time in the hotel after a big meeting or what you're doing first thing in the morning. Where are your mind, heart, and actions when no one else is around?

For some, those secret places are contributing to future failure or burnout. For others, the secret places are contributing to future influence, impact, and sustainability. Make no mistake, you have a secret place and it is building a bridge to your future, one way or another.

Application: Examine solitude in your life. When have you been by yourself that was truly life-giving? What were you doing then that you could replicate now? What would a productive 30 minutes of solitude look like for you?

4) You must become remarkably comfortable with your unique strengths and limitations.

Knowing your unique wiring — your skills, talents, personality, limitations — is one of the foundational elements of having a strong internal life. We've got to become comfortable with who we are and not try to mimic others. Ultimately, you've got to go on a journey of really getting to understand the blueprint that shapes your entire life.

Application: Briefly reflect every night on two things: 1) What felt energizing today? 2) What sapped my energy today? In as little as a couple of weeks, you'll see actionable patterns emerge.

5) You must get your priorities aligned.

Does your perception of yourself line up with reality? Most of us have some idea of the type of leader we'd like to be, but our actions don't always match our stated values. Too many leaders spend years misaligned without even realizing it. As such, getting your priorities aligned with how you're spending your time, energy, and money is a crucial part of achieving long-term success.

Application: Conduct an audit comparing what is most important in your life with how you are investing your time. Where are you overinvested? Where are you underinvested?

What I'm Listening to In Solitude

Gardens by Ivan Theva — turn that on in a quiet space and let it build some strength into your inner life.