A Few Things You May Not Know Happen When You Start to Succeed

Over the years, I’ve talked a lot about success, but it’s something I keep learning over and over: success brings unexpected challenges. While the rewards are fulfilling, the path to success requires more than just external validation—it demands inner strength, resilience, and, most importantly, the ability to advocate for yourself.

Here’s a truth I’ve learned: you have to keep pushing no matter what. Success doesn’t happen overnight, and it certainly doesn’t come without showing up every single day, especially when no one’s watching. It requires unwavering belief in yourself, even in the moments when doubt, exhaustion, and uncertainty feel overwhelming. Because when it gets tough, no one else will push you forward in the way that you can for yourself. You have to be your own biggest fan.

Some people might see success as an overnight achievement, but that’s far from reality. For context: I've worked on my Confident Me programme for 15 years with over 18k people. I've been performing for 39 years, studying and working professionally as an Artist and storyteller for 24 years, running personal development programs for over a decade, and my Charitable Trust just turned 6 this year. That's just a few things but it has been years and decades of effort, growth, and learning. Behind every "overnight success" is a long journey filled with failures, growth, and perseverance.

What I’ve come to understand is that no one will ever fully grasp the blood, sweat, and tears that have gone into your journey. As the saying goes, people envy what you have but never the sacrifices made to get there. They see the polished outcome but not the sleepless nights, the moments of self-doubt, or the sheer will it took to keep going. And as you start to shine, something interesting happens: people start to take credit for your work.

Some claim your success is because of them or link it to someone else’s influence. Some people will only see parts of all the work that you've done and assume it is because of other people. Not even considering the fact that there has been other work that you've been doing to also get you to that stage. What they won’t recognize is that it was YOU showing up every day, pushing forward even when it felt like the world was against you. YOU kept showing up every single day, sometimes battling through judgment, fear, exhaustion and no support! This can be frustrating and disheartening, especially when people attempt to diminish your efforts and not acknowledge your hard work.

But here’s the key: none of that matters if you know the truth. What matters is that you’ve kept going. You’ve overcome obstacles. You’ve shown up, even when it was hard, even when others didn’t believe in you. As long as you keep this truth at the forefront, nothing and no one can take away what you’ve accomplished.

So, when others try to take credit or rewrite your story, remind yourself: your success is yours. Own it. Stand firm in your truth. Advocate for yourself with pride, because you know what it took to get there.

And that’s something worth celebrating—not just once, but every single day.