Feeling Lost after Success?

Demi Tebow on identity, confidence and achievements

Demi Tebow is an entrepreneur, author of the book “A Crown that Lasts,” speaker, and advocate known for her deep Christian faith. Together, she and her husband, Tim Tebow support special needs advocacy, including the worldwide “Night to Shine” event, which celebrates individuals with special needs.

Demi was crowned Miss Universe in 2017, which brought her international fame and recognition. But like so many of us, Demi struggled with identity—especially when her achievements defined how the world saw her. She talked with us about how she learned to place her identity in something much more lasting than titles or fame.

After Giving Up the Crown

For many, winning Miss Universe might seem like the pinnacle of success. But for Demi, the year following her win was a whirlwind that left her feeling surprisingly hollow. “You know, sadly, just as quickly as I got that title, it also just as quickly got taken away from me,” she shared.

Temporary success can never be the foundation of who you are.

Demi recalls the exact moment she handed back her crown, describing how it marked the beginning of a season of uncertainty and struggle. “The night came where I had to give that crown back, and I just felt very empty. I felt lonely. I felt like I was just spiraling into a season that felt wasted.”

You might relate to this feeling—when something you worked so hard for, something that felt like it defined you, suddenly disappears. Whether it’s a job, a relationship, or an achievement, losing something you thought was part of your identity can leave you questioning who you are.

Finding Your Identity in Temporary Achievements

Winning Miss Universe was a dream come true, but once the title was gone, she struggled with feelings of insignificance. “At some point in our life, we might find ourselves in a place where we have rooted the essence of who we are in what we do,” Demi explained.

“The problem with that is when we root our identity in things that are temporary, at some point or another, it sends us spiraling into a roller coaster of emotions—of comparison, of not feeling like we are enough, or like we are not valuable or worthy.”

Whether it’s your career, social status, or even the admiration of others, when your worth is tied to something temporary, it can feel like your entire world falls apart when it’s gone.

Your confidence needs to come from something or Someone more permanent.

For Demi, giving up her crown was a moment of reckoning. She had to ask herself, “Who am I when I am no longer Miss Universe?”

Someone Permanent

In the midst of this identity crisis, Demi began to realize that her confidence needed to come from something more permanent. “I realized that I have to find something that allows me to have a stable, lasting identity,” she said. “An identity that’s not going to go on a roller coaster of emotions every time I hit a road bump.”

Her solution? Shifting her confidence from herself to God. “I have to replace that word ‘self’ with something that is fixed, that is never changing, that is always trustworthy, and that is bigger than myself,” Demi explained.

For Demi, that “something” was her faith in Jesus. Instead of relying on the temporary success that a title or achievement brings, she rooted her identity in God’s promises—promises that never change.

You are not your achievements. You are more than the titles you hold or the success you attain. And when you root your identity in God’s eternal promises, you’ll find the lasting peace and confidence you’ve been searching for.

More on this topic is available in Demi’s recently released book, “A Crown that Lasts: You Are Not Your Label.”

We’ve got more from our conversation with Demi. Check out previous blogs: Why Self Confidence Falls Short and Feeling Stuck?

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