Want career success? Raj Shamani says these two mindsets make the difference

Raj Shamani said in a LinkedIn post that two very different kinds of people often achieve meaningful career success. The post has prompted discussion on how pressure, privilege and personal standards shape professional growth.One group has no choice. The other refuses to settle. Raj Shamani says both succeed (Photo: LinkedIn/ AI-enhanced image)A recent LinkedIn post by entrepreneur and content creator Raj Shamani has sparked discussion around what separates people who achieve significant career success from those who settle for “good enough”.In the post, Shamani argues that there are broadly “only two kinds of people” who end up doing something meaningful with their lives, despite coming from very different circumstances.“The first ones are those with no safety net. Life put them in a position where figuring it out was the only option available. Their effort was never a choice. It was the only thing standing between them and going under. So they worked because for them there wasn't another option,” he wrote.According to Shamani, the second group appears to be the complete opposite. “The second ones are those who have the safety net but refuse to let that make them average. They could take it easy, and nobody would blame them. But they hold high self-standards because they can't stand the idea of being anything less than their best,” he added.PRESSURE AND PRIVILEGE, SAME DESTINATIONShamani says that while one group is driven by necessity and the other by personal standards, both share a common mindset. “On the surface, these two have nothing in common. One is driven by pressure, the other by pride,” he said, adding that the deeper connection lies in their unwillingness to accept mediocrity.“Both of them have removed 'good enough' from the table.”According to the entrepreneur, circumstances force the first group to keep pushing, while the second chooses to do so despite having the option not to.“For the first person, circumstances removed it. For the second, character did. Neither of them has the option to be mediocre and at peace with it.”The post resonates with conversations around career growth at a time when hiring expectations are changing and employers increasingly value initiative, adaptability and continuous learning alongside academic qualifications.Shamani concludes that long-term success is less about where someone starts and more about whether they allow themselves to settle.“It was never fundamentally about hardship or privilege or drive. It was about whether average is available as a comfortable place to stop,” he said while sharing the post on LinkedIn, where it has drawn reactions from professionals discussing motivation, discipline and the role of personal standards in career growth.- EndsPublished By: Mridusmita DekaPublished On: Aug 3, 2026 15:50 IST