Making Money Makes Enemies: The Cost of Potential

There’s a brutal truth no one teaches you early enough:

The higher you climb, the more enemies you’ll make.

Not because you’re doing something wrong—but because your growth exposes everything they chose not to become.

WWE's Chief Content Officer, Paul "Triple H" Levesque said it best:

“If you ain’t making enemies, you ain’t making money. If everybody doesn’t hate you, then you’re not living up to your full potential.”

And it’s not about being antagonistic. It’s about impact. It’s about understanding that real growth, real influence, and real ascension will always make insecure people uncomfortable. Because when you rise unapologetically:

🔹 You shine light on the mediocrity that comfort breeds.

🔹 You expose the ones who are hiding behind titles.

🔹 You disrupt the status quo — simply by existing fully in your power.

Small minds don't hate you when you fail—they hate you when you succeed while they settle. They hate you for having the potential to surpass them. They hate you for being better and not bitter about what life has given you.

And as I’ve said before about enemies and allies, even when people continually try to tear you down, your real tribe will lift you higher. Their hate becomes a silent confirmation that you're moving exactly as you should.

Hypocrisy Exposed

Iranian-American entrepreneur, investor, and philanthropist, Alex Hormozi put it simply:

"People want you to do well—but not better than them."

At first, some will cheer you on. They’ll clap for your first steps. But the moment your growth threatens their comfort, the cheers turn to whispers. They don’t mind your progress—until your progress passes them. That’s when the resentment surfaces. That’s when the passive-aggressive comments start. That’s when the sabotage creeps in. Because your success reminds them of everything they gave up on, or everything that exposed their limitations.

I've Lived It

I’ve seen this dynamic play out more times than I can count:

• A manager who promoted his less qualified friend to keep me from rising.

• A senior VP who blocked raises and promotions—and ultimately orchestrated my exit—not because I underperformed, but because I outshined.

• A C-level executive who ignored years of proven success, choosing instead to hire a less qualified outsider over me.

  
  

It wasn’t about my capabilities or my work ethic, because as long as I performed for their benefit, it wasn't a problem. It was when my potential shone through, it was when I started advocating for myself that I became a problem. And what my success exposed most was their fragility—their fear of what my growth revealed about their stagnation.

For a while, it hurt. For a while, it made me question myself and wonder what I was doing wrong. But when clarity came, it was overwhelming:

I hadn't done anything wrong. I succeeded. And they hated me for it. The more I succeeded, the more they hated me, because my success made them confront their own mediocrity.

Your Rise is the Revolution

When you step fully into your potential, you don't just climb higher—you force others to look inward.

🔹 Some will be inspired.

🔹 Some will be intimidated.

🔹 Some will try to tear you down because they never learned to fly.

And that’s the cost of growth. But it’s also the beauty of it. Once you stop fearing their resentment or allowing their negativity to impact you, you start living without limits. You stop asking for permission to rise. You stop shrinking to fit into rooms too small for you. You stop apologizing for the light you carry.

You rise—and you build.

Final Thought

If you're making people uncomfortable by living fully in your potential?

Good.

If you're losing false supporters because you refuse to stay small?

Good.

If you’re making enemies by being excellent?

Good.

Because the only thing worse than being hated for your greatness is being loved for being mediocre.

Keep building. Keep rising. Keep becoming.

👑