(Spoiler alert!  If you haven’t watched the TV show Succession or you’re working your way through it, this email contains spoilers galore.  So look away now)

The unlikely hero in this “Shakespearean epic” as critics have called it (more Mickey Mouse than Macbeth in my eyes, but there you go) is the doormat and wet lettuce extraordinaire Tom Wambsgans.

A character who kowtows to the head honchos like a fawning elf brown-noses Santa Claus at Christmas.

Yet Wambsgans ends up top dog.

In the words of Succession creator Jesse Armstrong:

It’s often how it goes in large companies: a relentless mediocrity, a pain sponge, rises to the top, while more glamorous but lazier contenders fall by the wayside

And “pain sponge” only skims the surface for a man who takes grenade after grenade for four seasons, including a near-miss behind bars.  And who, in his new role as head of the head honchos, will soon be soaking up more excruciating levels of pain.

So has Wambsgans really ended up victorious?

Well, he has in one sense.  He’s made it to the top of the mountain and now has the power and prestige which comes with that.

But perhaps he’s not victorious in another sense. 

Because as the show wrapped, I didn’t get the impression that the power and prestige had made Tommy boy particularly happy.

And this could be playing on Tom’s mind too when he tells his wingman Greg “You seem much happier than me”.

But hey. 

Victory is in the eye of the beholder. 

Maybe Tom was happy with how things went.  Maybe he was happy being unhappy.  Or maybe he simply didn’t want to be happy.

Some people don’t want to be happy.  And who am I to tell them otherwise?

Bottom line for me is this:

It doesn’t matter two jots how anyone chooses to live their life.  That's their business, not mine.

But what is my business is helping people get crystal clear on the life they want to live. 

So this is where I’d start with Tom.

In my experience, matching what you want from life with how you live your life is the way to find more joy and ease and fulfilment.  And getting clear on what you want is the first step.

Maybe getting clear on what you want isn’t what you want?  If so, that’s fine by me.

But maybe it is.

Maybe you would like to get clearer.

If so, let’s have a complimentary call to discuss how I could support you and explore whether coaching might be a good option for you.

Here’s the booking link:

https://calendly.com/followingfulfilment

Even if this is our only call, I’m confident you’ll come away with more clarity.

That’s all for today. 

 - Tom