Are You Losing Yourself To Your Career Or Small Business?

Do you feel as though you have to live up to a certain image or level of success because that’s what everyone expects of you? Despite all you have managed to accomplish, do you still beat yourself up over all of your mistakes? Are you a successful professional who is so consumed by your career that you don’t know who you are outside of work?  

Perhaps you are a small business owner and the heavy demands of long, stressful hours make it difficult to give your personal life and your loved ones the attention they deserve. Or maybe you can’t justify focusing on anything else because of a deep, underlying fear that it will cost you everything if you do.  

Pursuing success and bettering yourself professionally are noble and worthwhile goals. But if you are a workaholic or an overachiever, it can have a negative impact on your life. You may be having trouble forming or maintaining relationships. The people you care about may feel neglected or ignored. If you have children, you may not be spending enough quality time with them. And on your end, you probably can’t relax or take time off, so you end up working through weekends and vacations. You may even be skipping routine doctor’s visits.

The truth is, you are so much more than your job—and there is so much more to life than work. As a therapist, I can show you how to establish a positive work-life balance, set healthy boundaries, and enjoy all that you have accomplished. 

Balancing A Career And A Personal Life Is Tough For Many Professionals

Many professionals and business owners struggle to be as content in their personal lives as they are in their careers. At first glance, stress, long hours, and the demands of work are frequently to blame for strained relationships and poor work-life balance. But for some individuals, an underlying sense of emptiness, insecurity, or uncertainty in their lives drives them to work because it’s easier than dealing with what is really going on. 

For example, we all occasionally experience anger toward loved ones. That’s normal. Yet a person who can’t accept that anger may unconsciously channel their aggressive impulses into a successful career. At the same time, their discomfort with that anger leaves them feeling unworthy and ashamed. 

In that regard, different aspects of your life can create physical and emotional challenges that evoke either fear or confidence. And because your mind wants to safeguard you from danger, you can unconsciously start bowing to self-protective measures that do more harm than good, such as overworking. The unfortunate cost of this is that you ultimately start restricting your social life or relationships, which, in turn, creates an even deeper feeling of emptiness and insecurity.

And though you may worry that going to therapy will make you lose your edge, the complete opposite is generally true. Once you understand who you are and what motivates you to succeed, you can begin making changes that will lead to a much more fulfilling career and personal life.  

Counseling For Professionals Can Help You Discover Who You Really Are 

Many successful people feel like they’re unworthy of what they have. They often don’t think very highly of themselves, and it’s difficult for them to accept that the rest of the world sees them differently. But those insecurities are often the result of something more significant than just stress.

Therapy provides you with a private, non-judgmental space in which you can safely look inward, identify where those negative self-perceptions originate, and discover your true self. It offers you the chance to learn how your own inner critic—not the judgment of others—ultimately influences how you regard yourself. 

Rather than abiding by a structured treatment plan, I’ll let our conversations guide us. So after we get some preliminary paperwork out of the way, we’ll begin by simply talking about what brings you to therapy. How are these challenges affecting your relationships or well-being? And what kind of goals are you working toward? During our conversation, I may ask clarifying questions or offer light interpretations, but in the beginning, I mostly just want to hear you share your story.

Though I will provide you with practical solutions for improving your work-life balance, I really want to understand what is at the core of your unique situation. If we merely treat what’s happening on the surface, it’s possible the same issues could pop up again in a different manner. 

By looking into the reasons behind the imbalance between work and your personal life, you can learn more about who you are and why you unconsciously shortchange yourself. Additionally, learning about what drives you to live and work the way you do will equip you to make whatever changes you think are needed in your life. 

To get below the surface and treat the problem at its source, I use a combination of psychoanalysis and psychotherapy. Though they may sound technical, these tools are simply depth-oriented styles of talk therapy meant to reveal what’s really going on beneath the symptoms. 

I know that looking inward and getting in touch with your emotions can seem intimidating. But you are so much more than your career, and counseling can show you who that person is. I’ve seen therapy help many professionals and business owners learn to embrace their success while building a gratifying life that they can enjoy and feel deserving of. And I believe that with my help, you too can find balance and strengthen the relationship you have with yourself as well as your loved ones. 

Perhaps you are considering counseling for professionals and business owners, but you still have concerns…

I don’t have time to commit to weekly appointments.  

I know you have a lot on your plate, however, there’s an old saying: “Where there’s a will, there’s a way.” If you’re motivated, we’ll find a way to connect for weekly sessions. Just the act of doing something to take care of yourself will bring a sense of accomplishment and relief. If you apply the same work ethic to making yourself happier in therapy as you apply to your career, you’ll be surprised by what you can accomplish.

I don’t want to lose my edge; I use my stress to motivate myself to stay ahead.

Over the years, I’ve worked with a lot of creative professionals and many of them come to me with this fear that therapy will disrupt their ability to express themselves. But experience tells me that therapy actually frees people to be more creative. Pushing yourself to do better is an admirable trait, yet it’s not stress that fuels you. Motivation comes from within. 

By looking inward and resolving any underlying psychological issues that create pressure for you to overachieve, you can feel less stressed, more satisfied, and content with your life while still accomplishing everything you need to.

I’ve got money, a really nice house, and a great family. I have so much that others don’t have. I shouldn’t need to go to professional counseling.

No one goes through life problem-free. Some of the wealthiest, most successful individuals in the world have needed to course-correct every once in a while. And many have availed themselves of the benefits of speaking to a therapist. The fact that many people don’t have what you have doesn’t mean that you aren’t deserving of help when you need it. You’re just as human as everyone else.

Let Me Help You Discover Who You Are And What Makes You Happy

If you are stressed, overworked, or on the edge of burning out, there is a way to find balance in your life. Please call (212) 475-3488 for a free, 15 to 20-minute phone consultation to address any questions or concerns you have about my approach to counseling for professionals. Or contact me to get started with your first session. 

Out of concern for Covid-19, all professional counseling sessions are currently being conducted online or via phone.

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