Friday is My Monday - Episode 10

Success is simple when you’re starting out.

More deals.More money.More wins.

But when the stakes get higher, success starts to look different.

Now people depend on you.Your decisions affect families.Your reputation matters.

At some point success stops being about how high you climb…and starts becoming about who you impact along the way.
That’s what today’s podcast is about. 

🎧  Redefining Success When the Stakes Are Higher

#Leadership #Success #Mindset #Growth #FridayisMyMonday #AudraONeal

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:07

Welcome back to Friday is my Monday with Audrey O'Neill. Girl, thank you so much for watching. And today I want to talk about something that nobody really prepares you for, and that is what success looks like when the stakes start getting higher. When you're young, success is simple. It's getting the job, buying your first house. I'll never forget that day. It's starting a business, making your first commission check. Y'all, I did both sides of the transaction and I thought I was gonna be Martha Turner in no time. But something interesting happens as life moves forward. The stakes get higher. Now it's not just about you anymore. Now you have employees depending on you, clients trusting you for guidance and expertise. Your kids are watching you. You're protecting a reputation that took decades to build. And suddenly, success doesn't quite feel the same. Now it's not a bad feeling, it's just a different feeling. In the beginning, most of us define success by achievement: more money, more deals, more recognition, more awards on the walls, more wins, especially in real estate. It's pretty easy to measure. More listings, more closings, more production. But here's the truth. Most people don't really talk about. That version of success eventually starts to feel a little incomplete. Because once you get there, you realize something very important. Winning alone is not the same as building something meaningful. That really resonated with me when I read it. And at some point in life, the scoreboard changes. You're no longer asking, how do I win? Now you're asking, how do I lead? How do I protect what I've built? How do I make decisions that impact other people's futures? Because that is something that we do every day. When you're responsible for others, every decision carries weight. Hiring someone affects their family. A business decision affects your business or your team. Advice to a client could affect their finances. Success suddenly becomes less about ego and more about stewardship. That's a completely different game. When the stakes get higher, so does the pressure. Because people are always watching you. You may not know who, you may not know when, but they're always watching you. Your team watches how you handle adversity. Your kids watch how you handle success and failure. Your clients watch how you handle integrity. And leadership can feel very lonely sometimes. There are moments where you're carrying, you're carrying decisions very quietly because you know the ripple effects are real. But here's what I've learned: pressure, it's not a burden. It's proof that what you're actually doing matters. If nobody is depending on you, the stakes are the stakes are not high enough. So, what does success start to look like when the stakes rise? Well, it becomes less about what you accumulate and more about what you build and who you impact. It becomes more about creating opportunity for others. And one of the most important things for us is building a reputation that outlives the transactions. Helping people make life-changing decisions with confidence. And success is about legacy, not the kind written on a trophy, but the kind written in people's memories and lives, their daily lives. The leadership shift is real, okay? Early in your career, you work to prove yourself. Later in life, you're working to elevate others because that's a different kind of win. It's no longer about closing the deal, even though it's still a very important part of our world. The win is seeing someone on your team grow into their potential. The win is watching your kids learn discipline, faith, and character and how to live on a budget. The win is a client telling you years later that you helped them make the best decision of their life. And that happened this week. That was an exciting day. And then when you realize how amazing and powerful that is, success isn't a moment, it's a responsibility. So as we wrap this up here, some final thoughts. And if this is kind of hitting you today and the stakes feel heavier in your life, then that might actually mean that you're exactly where you're supposed to be. Because higher stakes mean bigger influence. They mean people trust you. They mean that the work that you're doing, it actually matters. And sometimes redefining success simply means not asking how high can I climb, but asking how many people can I bring with me. That's a version of success worth chasing. So, y'all, thank you for listening today. This was really heavy on my mind, and I felt like I just needed to get it out there. So if this resonated with you or you're thinking about it, share this with a friend, a business owner, a boss, um, anybody that's special in your life. And I will be back next week. And remember, success isn't just measured by what you achieve, it's measured by the lives you impact along the way. See you next week. On Friday is my Monday with Audra O'Neal, your local Texas realtor.