CEO at pclub.io - Skill Transformation for Revenue Teams. Trained 11,000+ sales professionals and leaders. MSG ME if you're looking to upskill your SaaS sales or revenue team.
Two years ago today, I was doing better than ever financially. I had just taken on a new role leading multi-product revenue at Gong, and was convinced this would get me closer to my coveted goal of becoming a CRO. More money? Check. More prestige? Check. Impact on others? Swept that part under the rug. But the real problem? I was running on 10 hours of caffeine followed by 5 hours of alcohol most days, reacting to the demands of too many stakeholders, and constantly on the verge of a meltdown. It all erupted that June, while celebrating President's Club in Punta Mita Mexico. After a day of surfing and celebrating, I was rushed to a Mexican hospital with what I thought was a heart attack. After 20 hours of tests, the doctors confirmed it was nothing more than an incredible panic attack. Six months of doing work I pretended to like for the sake of career growth will do that. I was like a boiling tea kettle that exploded. And explode I did. It's silly to write now. But several times during that night, the thought that "could this be it?" crossed my mind, and launched me into soul-searching. I realized it was time for something new. "It's time to shift my focus off of just me." I took 6 weeks off. Unfortunately the panic attacks continued every day for several weeks. With the help of a therapist, I began journaling on a few big questions, including "What impact do I most care about having on the world, that would also empower me to achieve my financial goals?" And "What's my purpose? What has an overlap between serving humanity, while also having financial rewards?" After thinking about this, I concluded that serving your purpose, and making big money, are not mutually exclusive. Perhaps I didn't need to choose between building financial abundance, and impacting others? I wouldn't trade this dark experience for the world. Because it led to those soul-searching questions that led me to where I am now: Given I've always had a lifelong passion for learning, and that "skill acquisition" almost single-handedly raised me from lower-class to financial abundance, I ended up with a mission of "Raise prosperity by helping others acquire economically valuable skills." That's a mission that speaks to me unlike any other. And it's still the driving force behind pclub.io today. Some of you might be in a similar situation I was in. If so, I encourage you to break the false dichotomy of impact and personal success: What if you could achieve both? Maybe, just maybe, you could make an incredible impact, and attain the material rewards you're presently after. P.S. If you're a SaaS sellers and want to reach the next level of your financial success without the meltdown, give these 30 deal-closing strategies a try: https://lnkd.in/gZcrmSWE
Keith Winer
2w
Thanks for sharing and congrats on the success of pclub.io!
This is a great story and one we can all learn from. Very glad you’re with us Chris to share so much practical wisdom!
Jc Pollard
2w
Gosh this is such a powerful story.
Kyle Willis
2w
Every seller (really everyone) needs to read this
Yesterday, I was drafting a post about how many people I trained in high corporate positions suffered from strokes. I never knew that was a thing until I moved cities and started training a different demographic. They also relied heavily on alcohol and caffeine. Some experienced permanent facial effects from those strokes which affected their confidence. A few eventually left their corporate roles to start their own ventures. Thanks for being so open about this, it's something many people don't speak about but seems to be more common than we think.
Thank you for sharing such a personal and transformative journey. It's inspiring to see how you turned a challenging experience into a mission that not only benefits you but also aims to uplift others. Your story is a powerful reminder that financial success and impactful work don’t have to be mutually exclusive. Given your experience, what strategies have you found most effective for maintaining a healthy work-life balance while pursuing your professional goals? And how do you ensure that your team at pclub.io also maintains this balance?
Kayla Langel
2w
Hope you are continuing to take the best care of yourself! There's a long journey ahead of most of us (myself included) to tune into our what our bodies are telling us.
Nick Hall
2w
Great share, thanks for your honesty. I was also prompted by panic attacks to transition to a career that is more aligned with who I really am. Whilst it was a tough situation at the time, I wouldn’t be doing something I love now without it. So, like you, I wouldn’t trade my experience even if I could.
Josh Seidman
2w
Thank you for sharing, Chris. What a life-changing experience. I’ve seen and experienced similar situations as a sales leader. Beyond purpose and financial success, there’s a crucial need for frontline leaders to be more empathetic and HUMAN. The past few years have been exceptionally challenging for many, and it’s our responsibility to engage with our team members on a deeper, more personal level.
Manager, Mid Market & Enterprise Account Management
2wThanks for sharing