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What inspired you to write Get Off the Ladder?
I worked with a lot of people and teams who felt like they were stuck. They didn’t feel as though they had done anything personally or professionally. Mind you, some of them had years of different accomplishments varying in size. But nothing that was considered a “big deal” to them. In their minds they hadn’t done anything worthy of being recognized and didn’t feel any fulfillment in their actions like they didn’t hit some ridiculously high target, they hadn’t reached the proverbial top yet. An arbitrary point set, sometimes by themselves, but usually by societal standards that can be impossible to reach.
This is pretty common thinking. That we can’t feel any satisfaction in our accomplishment until we reach the very top of whatever it is we are trying to do. And that final spot, that is success, and that is where we will find fulfillment. So in order to reach it we have to just keep on going. That we have to keep climbing this “ladder” and only when we reach the top can we be satisfied in what we have done and can we say we were successful. This leads to disillusionment. Because we might never actually reach the top, and we think it isn’t worth it and give up. All while missing the smaller accomplishments that make up life itself.
So, the idea came that we need to rethink this entire process. We need to get off the ladder, and rethink what it means to be successful and where we should derive satisfaction in life from. It isn’t one single grandiose accomplishment, it is all the different ones we can have through out entire lives. Because life isn’t a straight climb or linear process, it is a cyclical one we can follow again and again. It became the underlying idea for my dissertation, and was crafted to be more applicable to everyday life.
Can you share a personal experience that shaped your view on success and satisfaction?
When I was still in the Marines I set a goal to become a Marine Combat Instructor of Water Survival. That’s a mouthful, so they are known as MCIWS. It is not an easy certification to come by. Less than .1% of the Marine Corps hold this cert. Mainly because the course itself is so demanding. They have an attrition rate of 50%, and most dropouts are what’s called a DOR or “drop on request”. The training is so rigorous, mentally and physically, not many make it through. Its literally hours of swimming, treading water and drills that are all done to “drown proof” you. There was a lot of time spent at the bottom of the pool, lungs burning, wanting to come up for air, but you just had to finish the drill first.
