Rich, Powerful, and Miserable
It was 1999. I had a ton of money for the first time in my life and I wanted to buy an amazing apartment.
Just a year earlier, I had $0. I had college debt. But I was happy with zero. Every day was an adventure.
Then I sold a company. And my troubles began.
Nancy, the real estate agent, would show me huge apartments.
She showed me all the apartments where I had previously thought all my life “only rich people live here.”
I was jealous of them. Now I was one of those people other people were jealous of.
I could live there!
I could live in a fancy apartment facing Central Park. I could live in The Dakota, just like Steve Jobs and John Lennon once did.
I could live facing Gramercy Park and have a key to the park.
I could live in a 5,000-square-foot loft in Tribeca.
The Tribeca loft was three blocks from the World Trade Center. It had 20-foot ceilings. It was a penthouse and we had the roof.
“Location!” Nancy told me as we stood on the roof.
I actually asked Nancy, “What if a plane hits the World Trade Center? What if terrorists attacked?”
She said to me, and I will never forget it:
“James, you can’t live your life that way.”
Last week, when I sat down with Marshall Goldsmith for my podcast, I was reminded of this time in my life.
I’ll tell you why.
From Bankrupt to Booming
If you're not familiar with Marshall, he's a world-renowned executive coach who's worked with over 150 CEOs and their management teams.
He's written several bestselling books, including "What Got You Here Won't Get You There" and "The Earned Life."
I wanted to pick his brain and understand how this man, who’s coached some of the top CEOs in the world, does what he does.
Take Alan Mulally, for example. You know, the guy who turned Ford around from the brink of bankruptcy?
When Alan took over Ford, the company was hemorrhaging money, stock prices were plummeting, and bankruptcy seemed inevitable. But when he left, Ford was not only financially solid, but Alan also had a 97% approval rating among employees in a unionized company.
When I asked Marshall how he managed to help Alan, his response: "Work with great people." It sounds simple. Find people who are dedicated to improving themselves. It is simple. But you’ll look like a genius.
One of the most memorable stories from our conversation was about Hubert Joly, the guy who turned Best Buy around.
When Hubert took over Best Buy, the company was struggling, and people didn’t feel inspired to go to bat for him. But Hubert did something nobody else would think of doing. He stood in front of everyone and said, "My name is Hubert. I get feedback. I have a coach. I’m trying to improve."
He didn’t come in as a know-it-all savior; instead, he showed vulnerability and a willingness to grow. That approach helped him build trust and create a culture where everyone was working together to save the company.
As we kept talking, a theme emerged.
Whether it was CEOs or chefs, athletes or everyday people, Marshall’s message was clear: success isn’t about results, it’s about process.
Sure, we all want to achieve things, but if you’re constantly chasing the next goal, thinking that happiness is just around the corner, you’ll never actually enjoy the moment.
This idea hit home when Marshall told me about Curtis Martin, the NFL Hall of Famer. Curtis once gave a speech to rookies in the NFL, warning them that fame and money wouldn’t bring happiness. In fact, he said, if you really want to ruin someone’s life, give them fame and money at a young age and watch what happens.
Achievement and happiness, Marshall reminded me, are independent variables. You can achieve everything you’ve ever dreamed of and still be miserable.
“Achieve to achieve,” he said. “Be happy to be happy. They’re not the same thing.”
That’s the kind of wisdom that makes Marshall Goldsmith worth listening to, and I urge you to check out our conversation on the podcast.
It’s full of these nuggets of insight that can change the way you approach life, work, and leadership.
Marshall isn’t just a coach; he’s a guide to being a better version of yourself, and who couldn’t use a little bit of that?
I could have definitely used it back in 1999.
I went from happy and broke to rich and miserable… and then, because of that, lost everything. (Which made me MORE miserable.)
