Probably the most important group in the history of music was the Beatles. The group was formed, since 1962 until its separation, by John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison, and Ringo Starr. They had incomparable success in the 1960s. Since their disappearance as a group, there has been much speculation about the reasons that led them to make such a decision. Paul McCartney himself describes their concert at the New York Shea Stadium in the summer of 1965 as the beginning of the end of the group. In this concert, they gathered 55,000 people who did not stop singing and shouting throughout the concert. It was the largest concert held by the band up to that point. McCartney claims that during the concert, there was so much noise that they stopped listening to their own music. The thunderous screams of the fans prevented them from hearing their music, which made it significantly difficult for them to perform properly. And he describes the beginning of the end of the group after this overwhelming success. From this moment on, it was difficult to manage the group and internal problems began that led to the group’s disappearance.
It is a good analogy to better understand the problems that success usually entails.
It happens to many companies. They have a clear vision, they begin to develop their mission well, they are successful, they begin to grow, they are more successful… and on many occasions, they lose contact with reality, they lose their essence, and, paraphrasing McCartney, they stop listening to their own music.
The same thing happens to professionals too. Many people begin to be successful in their professional careers, they grow and as they become successful, they lose contact with reality. They forget their essence and become other professionals, other people with different values. And then when they “stop listening to their own music,” the problems begin.
Obviously each one at their level. You don’t have to be the Beatles and fill a stadium with fans. On your own level, when you are consistently successful you can lose your way.
As they say, SUCCESS OFTEN LEADS TO ARROGANCE AND ARROGANCE OFTEN LEADS TO FAILURE.
I love the quote from British chef Marco Pierre White in this regard,
“Success is born from arrogance, but greatness comes from humility.”
There are countless examples of very successful people who have been very unhappy and have had numerous problems, and in most cases, they have ended very badly. Surely you remember actors, singers, athletes, businessmen who could not digest their success and their own success led them to take bad decisions with terrible consequences.
Yes, I know that you are probably not an elite athlete or an international singer. But surely you have people around you who have been successful and have not known how to manage it. That success has changed them completely and not exactly for the better.
In this sense, I RECOMMEND THAT YOU BE VERY CAREFUL IF YOU ARE SUCCESSFUL. BE TRUE TO YOUR VALUES AND YOUR PRINCIPLES AND NEVER FORGET WHAT MADE YOU SUCCESSFUL. SURROUND YOURSELF WITH PEOPLE WHO KEEP YOU GROUNDED AND HELP YOU CHECK IF YOU’RE STILL LISTENING TO YOUR OWN MUSIC.
As the well-known phrase of an anonymous author says,
“Never allow success to reach your head, nor failure to reach your heart.”
