#48 The Michael Jordan of Ghostwriting on the One Thing Nobody Ever Told His Clients: A conversation with author and screenwriter Michael Levin

You hit the milestone everyone wanted, and the voice in your head only got louder. Now you have to be even better, and some quiet part of you is terrified you won't be. Michael Levin has been called the Michael Jordan of ghostwriting: more than a thousand books, New York Times bestsellers, a screen credit for Disney, and a client list of billionaires, CEOs, and world-changers he mostly can't name. He's also a marathoner and triathlete, still racing at 68. And after decades sitting across from the most successful people alive, he's noticed something they almost never say out loud, no one ever told them they were enough. If you've spent your career proving you're enough, this is the conversation that finally lets you off the hook.   Additional Resources: Connect with Michael Levin: https://www.michaellevinwrites.com/ The Story Effect: http://thestoryeffect.com/ Connect with Danielle on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/daniellekrischik Follow The Story Effect on Instagram: http://instagram.com/storyeffectpodcast Learn about Knight Agency: http://knightagency.com/ Follow PeopleForward Network on LinkedIn Learn more about PeopleForward Network   Key Takeaways: The fear never fully leaves, even at the very top of your field, and that is not the problem you think it is. Many high performers never developed a sense of "enough," and a single sincere "I'm proud of you" can change someone who has heard everything but that. There is a difference between people who want to win and people who have to win, and you never bet against the second kind. Build your own definition of success and failure so the scoreboard stops belonging to everyone else. The freedom in "I can't turn down everybody, but I can turn down anybody" means the honeymoon always tells you what the marriage will be like. The real question underneath most frustration is "what am I tolerating?" and raising that one standard raises everything else.