I was sitting at the dinner table with my family—food gone cold on my plate—because I'd spent the entire meal answering "urgent" messages. I told myself I was making an impact. And I was... in everyone else's life. But in my own? I was living in a deficit.

In this episode, I share the pattern I finally had to name: I was both the arson AND the firefighter in my own life. The fires weren't the problem. The pattern starting them was.

I also share a recent client conversation where I almost lost a client—on purpose—because I saw something she couldn't see. And what I discovered underneath her overwhelm will sound painfully familiar.

If you've ever wondered why things never seem to calm down no matter how hard you work... this episode is for you.

In This Episode:

• Why I spent years with cold dinners and counting down to bedtime

• The pattern that keeps high-achievers exhausted (arson + firefighter)

• The inherited belief that creates "indispensable" syndrome

• The boundary I set with a client that changed everything

• 3 questions to ask yourself next time a "fire" shows up

• The shift from "sacrifice for success" to "prosperity AND presence"

"I was both the arson AND the firefighter in my own life."

"Productivity, is the most socially acceptable form of self-sabotage there is."

"You made yourself indispensable. And now you're trapped inside the very thing you built."

"My daughter's not going to remember how many clients I helped. She's going to remember if I was there."

Your Breakthrough Blueprint (Free Quiz): https://subscribepage.io/breakthroughblueprint

The You & Your Soul-Led Business Program: https://ascensionacademy.life/product/you-your-soul-led-business-development-program/

Connect With Anik

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LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/anikmalenfant/

Website: https://masteringascension.com/coaching/

Timestamps:

• 00:54 — The cost of overcommitting: Missing family time and feeling exhausted.
• 01:34 — Emotional deficit: Realizing the impact on personal and family life.
• 02:38 — Self-judgment: Questioning motherhood, entrepreneurship, and boundaries.
• 03:34 — When did your family last get the best of you? Reflecting on priorities.
• 04:42 — The pattern of saying yes: How small favors become big commitments.
• 05:15 — Productivity as self-sabotage: A client story about overwhelm and boundaries.
• 06:37 — Inherited patterns: Service as love, sacrifice as worth.
• 07:51 — Why exhaustion persists: Always another fire to put out.
• 08:28 — Setting boundaries: No more crisis calls after hours.
• 09:09 — Empowering clients: Stepping back to let others grow.
• 10:35 — The shift: Building a business that supports life, not the other way around.
• 11:29 — Three questions to ask when a fire shows up in your life.
• 12:44 — Patterns vs. time management: How to truly change.
• 13:52 — Breakthrough Blueprint: A tool to identify your invisible ceiling.
• 14:36 — The discomfort of change: Proof that the pattern is breaking