Why Your Past Success Could Be Sabotaging Your Future Freedom?
Do you believe the best years of your life are behind you, or still ahead?
I asked myself that question in Sydney in June 2022, right before booking a skydive. I had done many exciting things in my life, yet I was stuck in my career and lost in direction. That jump became one of the turning points of the year. It helped me decide to start my own business instead of returning to selling enterprise software.
If you believe your best years are still ahead, start investing in yourself and your future now. The returns will compound in money, health, and relationships.
If you believe they are behind you, write that autobiography and relax. Be grateful for the memories. Enjoy them. And who knows, something might still spark.
A quick mindset reminder
Last week, I shared how shifting from an employee to a founder mindset this summer changed a lot for me.
Without growth mindset even the best business systems won’t help. Founder will slip back into employee habits. Entrepreneur will choose security over scale. You will focus on simple tasks instead of vision.
Past success can hold you back because you have something to lose: an identity and a reputation. When you pivot to a new direction, you must always re-educate your network. You must rebuild trust. You must restart momentum by introducing something new but understandable.
It takes time and energy, but can be done.
The founder game in practice
This week, I have been working on my founder-led marketing system. It’s how I create and share content to reach the right people and opportunities.
It did not come easy. I have tested styles, formats, collaborations, and channels for many years to find what works for me and my style. It’s surprisingly hard to have consistency with enough volume and creativity.
If you’ve noticed some improvements over the years, share your feedback. That would really be valuable.
Now I see a personal brand as one of the most valuable forms of leverage a founder can build. If people do not know what you are building, they cannot buy from you, support you, or join you.
Six creative industry trends making 2025 great time to build
The creator economy is growing fast. It’s projected to reach 500 billion dollars by 2027 (Goldman Sachs). Every platform takes time, money, and patience. Start now so you can build business leverage later.
Video revolution. YouTube paid creators 70 billion dollars in the last three years. It is the fastest way to build trust and authority.
Newsletter thrive. Substack has over 5 million paid subscribers. It is a great way to share deep insights.
AI tools like ChatGPT, Grok, and Gemini make high-quality content possible without a big team.
VC funding is strong. Creator economy tech startups have raised billions in total and growing with niche industry investors.
Hybrid careers are normal and a gateway to entrepreneurship. Many people mix consulting, content, and digital products.
Vibe coding is the new frontier. Tools like Lovable and Cursor help shape your brand look & feel and software product quickly.
First founder framework you need
Step 1 in the Founder’s Freedom Blueprint is about vision, values, and why.
Vision is the future you want to build and who you are building it for.
Values are the principles that guide your choices.
Why is the deeper reason you will keep going when it gets hard.
This is not bs. It is your decision framework.
Without it, you risk falling into the freelancer trap. It means trading your time for money. You will stay stuck in self-employment forever without building something that scales.
Systems over willpower
Corporate life gave me structure, connections, and showed what good really looks like. Entrepreneurship forced me to create it myself. For that I need systems that generate more predictable results faster and with less chaos. Now the results are already compounding.
I see the same with my clients.
One founder I recently helped was in an invisible mode when it comes to social media. A real professional, but hiding behind the feed.
Once we aligned his vision, values, and why, and built a simple system to tell his story, everything changed. He saw an immediate difference in interest and discussions with customers, potential investors, and even co-founders.
This experience reminded me that when your story is clear on social media, your impact grows far beyond what you can achieve with old school tactics.
My own creative fuel
When I build, I don’t only sit behind a screen.
I go to the gym. Heavy lifts clear my head and build confidence.
I take a long walk. Movement helps ideas surface.
I listen to heavy metal. It gives me the energy.
I listen to a podcast. New perspectives spark new ideas.
I meet founders for coffee. Real conversations inspire action.
These habits make me happy and fuel the fire.
What fuels you? Send me a message.
So, is your past success sabotaging your future freedom?
It could be. Success can make you comfortable. Even overconfident. It can keep you using old playbooks while the market moves on. It can make you underestimate the work needed to build trust, reputation, and systems.
Your salary and title might look like rewards. They could also be the golden cage holding you back from building something truly yours.
When I jumped out of that plane in Sydney, there was no turning back.
The freefall cleared my head in a way no meeting ever could. I still remember the adrenaline rush. It reminded me that momentum comes from taking the leap, not waiting for the perfect plan.
See the video here in my Facebook feed: https://www.facebook.com/share/v/19oTS8acrv/
If you want my full 8-step blueprint for breaking free and building your own business, download the Founder’s Freedom Blueprint here:
New eBook Released 8/2025
Transform your corporate experience into a thriving 1M€ business with this actionable eBook by Mika Pyhämäki, offering a proven 8-step framework to overcome limiting beliefs, leverage AI, and achieve entrepreneurial freedom. This is your roadmap to breaking free from the golden cage and building a profitable, scalable venture on your own terms.
