Hi Felix,

If you just reach that next goal, everything will click into place… right?

High Achievers live by a simple equation: more effort = more success = more fulfillment.
It’s what got you here. It’s why you’ve always pushed harder, aimed higher, and kept moving forward when others hesitated.
And yet, something isn’t quite adding up anymore.
You’ve accomplished things others only dream of, but instead of feeling fully satisfied, you find yourself restless, uneasy, and already chasing the next thing before the ink is dry on your last success.
You might tell yourself that this time will be different. The next milestone, promotion, or achievement—that will be the one that finally makes you feel like you’ve arrived.
But will it?

The Success Illusion: Why More Achievements Don’t Lead to Fulfillment

There’s a reason why so many high achievers feel like they’re always on the verge of satisfaction, but never quite there.
The problem isn’t that you haven’t achieved enough. The problem is that the game you’re playing is designed to keep you chasing.

This is what’s happening behind the scenes:

• Your brain adapts to success faster than you think.
  That initial rush of accomplishment? It’s real. But it’s also temporary. Every time you reach a new goal, your brain resets your expectations. What once felt like a massive win quickly becomes just another step on the ladder.
  
  
• You’re playing by external rules, not internal fulfillment.
  Many High Achievers unknowingly measure success by external benchmarks—titles, income, status, recognition. But external rewards can’t create deep internal satisfaction. You end up winning a game that doesn’t actually fulfill you.
  
  
• You’re stuck in the “Next Goal” trap.
  Each time you hit a goal and it doesn’t deliver lasting fulfillment, you assume the next goal will. It’s like being thirsty and drinking salt water—it keeps you moving, but it never truly satisfies.
  
  
• You confuse movement with progress.
  Chasing success keeps you busy. It makes you feel like you’re moving forward. But is it the right direction? Running faster won’t help if you’re on the wrong track.
  

The High Achiever’s Dilemma: The Harder You Chase, The Less You Catch

Here’s the harsh truth: the pattern of always wanting more is never-ending. You don’t need more success. You need a new way of defining it.
Because real success isn’t about achieving more—it’s about achieving the right things, in the right way, for the right reasons. And that requires a different way of operating.

The Shift From High Achiever to High Performer

The difference between a High Achiever and a High Performer is how they define success and how they pursue it.

• A High Achiever is driven by effort, competition and the need to constantly prove themselves.
• A High Performer is driven by mastery, purpose and alignment with what truly matters.

High Performers don’t just work hard. They work right. They know that real success isn’t about more—it’s about better.
They understand that effort isn’t the goal. Impact is.

A Question To Sit With (please)

For now, I don’t need you to change anything.
Just ask yourself this:

If achieving more hasn’t made me feel the way I expected, what am I really chasing?

Because when you understand that, everything changes.

In the next newsletter, we’ll go deeper into what’s really at stake: the hidden cost of being a High Achiever—and why ignoring it is the fastest way to burn out, disconnect, or lose sight of what truly matters.

Wishing you a week of sharp insights and smart recalibrations,

Felix Brabander
Founder of SensitiveHighAchievers.com