Fame and pleasure are the chief obstacles of Self-realization.
In other words these are the desire to be recognized in order to feel special and the desire for any kind of pleasure especially sex and food pleasure.
Desire for power and money are only means to get pleasure and fame.
Due to these two desires our mind is constantly agitated seeking and planning the means and the ways by which we will get more, better and different pleasure and get the recognition of others.
Desire is always accompanied with anguish, uneasiness, impatience fear, anxiety, irritability, anger, not not acquire or lose the pleasant and pleasurable object (for the ego persons are also objects) or situations, and follows disappointment, dissatisfaction, anger, depression, bitterness, melancholy when finally fail to obtain the desired object or we lose the already possessed. Due to desire and the desired based emotions we live in a perpetual vicious circle which is sustained by ignorance, imagination, identification, projection and attachment.
The result is a superficial life with rare fleeting moments of happiness, illusory temporary pleasures, and a lot of misery, disharmony, dissatisfaction, illness and suffering.