🔫 The Worst Year of My Life

The last 12 months has unquestionably been the worst of my life!

I spent the vast majority of 2024 embroiled in various legal actions. Probably 80% of my time taken, working with lawyers, fighting with lawyers - spending over £500k.

The money wasted was criminal, but worse than that was the headspace taken and the time I would never get back.

🏠 A Life on Pause

During that wasted year I had very little time, interest or motivation to work on any positive projects. I became grumpy, less social, permanently distracted, and slept terribly.

I had lost people I thought were friends (although in hindsight their never really were) and never felt more alone.

My personal life had been a mess for a long time. Well before this started. But the last 12 months took it from bad to horrendous.

The last few weeks I have slept no more than 3 or 4 hours a night and shed more than the odd tear.

🧠 The Wake-Up Call

But if I look back to what I dreamed of 25 years ago, then I had achieved it!

Multiple businesses. Lots of money. A big house. Multiple properties. A boat. A (relatively) high profile and attention.

I had achieved almost everything I had dreamed of and worked for - but I was truly miserable.

How could that be?

And then I came across a writing recently that talked about being careful what you optimise for.

Just like the old expression ‘be careful what you wish for, because you just might get it.’

In business, in life, in anything you build—you will get what you optimise for. The problem is, most people don’t realise that they are optimising for the wrong thing until it’s too late.

• If you optimise for money at all costs, you might get it—but at the expense of your time, your relationships, and your peace of mind.
  

• If you optimise for status and attention, you’ll attract it—but also the wrong kind of people, the lawsuits, the haters, and the pressure to maintain the image.
  

• If you optimise for speed, you might grow fast—but at the risk of burning out, breaking systems, and making expensive mistakes.
  

• If you optimise for power, you’ll get control—but you might end up alone, distrusting everyone around you.

The problem is you can’t optimise for everything. Every decision is a trade-off.

So when you wake up one day with money, but a business and life that owns you instead of the other way around? It’s because you didn’t optimise for freedom and happiness, but for growth, revenue, or dominance—without realising you were making a deal with the devil.

And that brings me to the next point…

👿 New Levels, New Devils

Every time you level up, you don’t get fewer problems—you get different problems.

• When you have nothing, your problems are about survival—getting clients, paying the bills, proving yourself.
  

• When you succeed, your problems become more expensive and more complex—lawsuits, taxes, hiring the wrong people, partnerships turning sour.
  

• When you get wealth and status, your problems become about trust—who’s genuine? Who’s trying to use you? Who’s looking for a lawsuit payout?

Most people think they want to be at the top, but they have no idea what comes with it. They see the freedom, the lifestyle, the perks—but they don’t see the pressure, the target on your back, the loneliness that can come with it.

This is why so many successful people are miserable. They climbed the ladder, but they never questioned whether they were climbing the right one.

So, before you chase the next level, ask yourself: Do I actually want what comes with it?

Because every level brings a new devil—and the bigger you play, the bigger the devil you’ll have to fight.

💡 A Reality Check

I guess I am just thankful that I identified this now so I can course correct before it really is too late and I wake up as a miserable 65 year old and my life has disappeared!

Something I consider myself incredibly lucky to have is my podcast. I get to meet all kinds of incredible and successful people who don’t just educate my audience but educate me too.

Educate, inspire, open my mind.

Something that always baffles me is the levels of resilience and happiness shown by some of my guests. Victims of rape and sex trafficking. People who lost their arms and legs. People who lost their children to horrific illnesses.

These are the real problems. Not just a bad day in the office like I moan about. (Even if it may have been 25 years of bad days in the office!)

And that is what wakes me up and gives me a reality check.

🏆 Redefining Success

A guest I had on recently is a guy called James Kemp. An incredible entrepreneur and marketeer who is on track to make £5 million per year net profit.

But the really amazing part? He has 1 member of staff (an assistant) and works 2 mornings a week!

The rest of his time spent with his kids, in the gym and doing what he considers ‘creative activities’ in the vast amounts of white space in his diary.

What I learned from James is that he sat down 1 day and said to himself ‘I don’t want a business. I just want cashflow and large amounts of free time to do exactly what I want. How do I go make that happen?’

So off he went and made that happen in a way that couldn’t be any better for him.

And that is exactly what I am going to do now too.

If you want to hear more about James’ incredible story—how he lost everything and rebuilt his life working just two mornings a week—listen to my latest podcast episode: James Kemp: The Self-Made Millionaire Who LOST EVERYTHING & Rebuilt His Life in 2 Days a Week!

🌟 What Do I Want?

I want to be able to wake up without an alarm clock. To spend 2 hours in the gym before I do anything else for the day. To have breakfast every day with my baby. To have a family. To have more children. To be in a relationship with someone who supports me. To play paddle tennis most days and plan multiple adventures (like my old Kilimanjaro trip, and my upcoming Everest Basecamp trip).

There is no amount of money or status that can replace all of this for me.

⏳ It’s Not Too Late

So now you have finished reading this, ask yourself if you are where you want to be. And if you aren’t, is that because you set off chasing the wrong things?

It isn’t too late to course correct. We only have one life. Make yours the one of your dreams.

🎙️Another Week On the Pod!

This week, we have two incredible episodes you won’t want to miss:

🎧 James Kemp: The Self-Made Millionaire Who LOST EVERYTHING & Rebuilt His Life in 2 Days a Week!
James shares how he built a multi-million-dollar consulting empire working just two mornings a week. If you want to learn how to escape the endless hustle and finally build a business that fits your life, listen now! Listen here 👇🏼

🎧 Zelmare Viljoen: Losing Everything, Reinventing Herself & Building Unstoppable Resilience.
Zelmare lost her home, her money, and even access to her children overnight. Instead of giving up, she used it as fuel to rebuild her life, becoming a corporate wellness entrepreneur and extreme endurance athlete.

Her journey of resilience, reinvention, and unstoppable determination is a must-hear! If you’re facing challenges and need inspiration to keep going, this episode is for you. Listen here 👇🏼

Want to work with me? Need my help?

I’ve been where you are—struggling with decisions, distractions, and scaling pains. Whether you need clarity on your next move, help building a strategy, or funding to fuel your growth, I can help.

Here’s how:
📞 Coaching with me: Real, no-bullshit advice tailored to your business. Book a 15 minute power coaching call here.
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💸 Get funding: Access funding to scale and thrive. Click here.
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💡 Let’s cut the bollocks and get to work. Book a call today, or reach out to my team, and take the next step toward making your business unstoppable!