Redefining Success From the Inside Out
- Aug 18, 2025
- 3 min read
By Robin Shannon, LCPC, NCC
For most of my life, I wore “high-achieving” like a badge of honor. As a Black woman raised in a military family, I learned early that success was about grit, discipline, and doing everything in my power to prove my worth. But somewhere along the way, I started to unravel, not in front of others of course. Outwardly I was thriving. But inwardly, I was exhausted from constantly showing up for others while quietly abandoning myself.
The mindset shift that changed everything? Learning to surrender striving for control and choose rest instead. Not the kind of rest that comes from a vacation, but a deeper rest rooted in knowing I am worthy, even when I’m not producing. That I can be seen and loved, even when I’m not fixing or performing. For me, healing meant confronting my overfunctioning tendencies and the fear underneath them. It meant choosing wholeness over grind culture and slowing down enough to hear the parts of me I’d been too busy to tend to.
As a therapist, educator, and business owner, I carry that same philosophy into how I support others. At Chicago Healing Connection, the psychotherapy practice I founded, we specialize in adult attachment and relationship therapy,especially for diverse clients who’ve been told survival is their only option. We help people unlearn the belief that their worth is tied to how much they give, how little they need, or how well they hide their pain.
To stay grounded while doing this work, I challenge myself to practice what I preach. I check in with my body and boundaries. I rest. I stay connected to people who reflect truth back to me when I forget it.
Most importantly, I stay connected to God, my source of strength, wisdom, and peace. Prayer, worship, and time in Scripture keep me centered. Without that, it’s easy to slip back into overdoing and overgiving. God reminds me I’m not carrying this work alone.
Healing is a continual journey for me. There’s no finish line. It’s a rhythm I return to again and again, choosing rest, honesty, and compassion over shame and striving. I invite my clients, my team, and myself to be honest about the “not-yet-there” moments. That’s where real growth happens.
One of my core beliefs and the foundation of Chicago Healing Connection is this: healing happens in relationship. That includes the relationship you have with yourself, with others, with God, and even with the systems you’re part of, whether that’s your workplace or your family.
That’s why I believe healing work is transforming modern entrepreneurship. For too long, hustle culture glorified burnout, disconnection, and scarcity. But we’re entering a new era, one where entrepreneurs are building from wholeness, not depletion. I see leaders creating businesses that prioritize wellness, authenticity, and care. I see women, especially women of color, giving themselves permission to rest, receive, and grow in ways that feel authentic.
Success is no longer just about revenue. It’s about living in alignment. It’s about building something that doesn’t just look good, but feels good and serves well. For me, healing is the most important part of my leadership strategy. It shapes how I build teams, design services, and make decisions. It’s what allows me to grow my practice, serve others, and mentor without losing myself in the process.
If I could tell my younger self one thing, it would be this: You don’t have to earn your worth by overextending yourself. You get to heal. You get to lead from a place of rest. And you get to redefine success,not by how much you carry, but by how well you care, for others and for yourself.
Connect With Robin
FB/IG: @chicagohealingconnection
Comments