Overcoming the Void Amid Success

By Donna T. Darantinao
HAPI Scholar

“Adversity has ever been considered the state in which a man most easily becomes acquainted with himself.” – Samuel Jackson

More often than not, people have always been encouraged to dream big, set goals, and slowly, very surely, reach them one by one. Of course, there is triumph in every victory that you accomplish. Why? You have worked hard for it, lost sleep for it, or maybe even had a few compromised relationships just to make your dreams work so it sure is worthy to celebrate wins in life. But what if after these victories, you still feel empty? What if, despite your goals making it easy for you to follow a pre-set path, an unexpected thing occurs: you feel a void.

We have always thought that if we do whatever it is that we love and triumph for that certain thing, we prosper. But what if the feeling of ecstasy is lost while you are at the period where you should be celebrating?

This has psychological implications as the brain releases dopamine to anticipate reward. Note that dopamine is a hormone linked to happiness and motivation; every time you reach a summit, your dopamine level rises and then drops, which makes it hard for you to enjoy the aftermath, leaving you feeling empty instead.

But no need to worry – this is something that every person in this world has most likely experienced, especially given that we are all in a never-ending cycle of working for our goals. So to help overcome that void despite succeeding in a lot of different things, here are a few reminders you can keep for your day-to-day activities:

Have more than one goal

This is very important because if you can keep yourself busy with other goals instead of just focusing on just one, you can understand that the world does not revolve around one ultimate summit. You can decide to have so many ‘ultimate summits’ and celebrate each one by preparing for the next one. This way, you are able to realize not only your potential but also unlock goals you never thought you even wanted to reach.

Have time to reflect

With every end to reaching a goal, you can ponder on the many things that you have learned and let go along the way. You can also give yourself a break from a few weeks or even months of processing to reach a certain goal by giving yourself time to recuperate. Do not be too hard on yourself and remember to enjoy life whilst working for your aspirations.

Have someone to share your learnings with

There is nothing more fulfilling than being able to share your triumph and learnings with other people who have similar goals as you and are also working towards them. This will make you feel that your aspirations are there for the long haul and will have a genuine influence on people that whom you interact. So go ahead! The world deserves to know your success story.

These pieces of advice might not take you out of the “void” immediately, but at least you can help yourself by taking it slow. Learn to overcome the emptiness a little at a time. No pressure!