In Atlas Shrugged, how does Hank's contradictions in his philosophy harm him psychologically and practically?

Hank Rearden, business man to be feared, and genius inventor of an innovative new type of metal, has always put work first in his life.  His work is the only thing that gives him true joy, and he has surpassed numerous obstacles and boundaries in order to succeed.  Success in the business world, and with his steel, has been his mantra for years.  He is willing to succeed at almost any cost--alienating his family, drowning out competitors, and showing no mercy to incompetent workers.

However, his drive to succeed is contradicted by the fact that he still bows before the moral code that the new politicians are preaching at the time.  He still, to a certain extent, cares about what the world thinks of him.  He still, to a certain extent, believes in the values and ideals that his society is preaching at him.  The one thing that he is still not willing to sacrifice in order to succeed, is his society's rules and standards in regards to certain things.  What takes him under in the end, is signing the equality act, in order to protect Dagny from being revealed as his lover.  This indicates that he is still letting the society around him make him feel ashamed for the very fulfilling and validating relationship that he had with Dagny.  He still assumes that it was wrong, and that Dagny would be ashamed to have it known to the world.  It is this erroneous assumption that eventually brings his business down, because he has let the moochers in, and they take it all in the end.

So, Hank's philosophy contradicts his actions.  He states he doesn't care what the world thinks of him, but caves to the world's pressures and standards.  He states that he will succeed at any cost, but does not stand his ground in order to succeed--instead, he sacrifices his own mind and will, which leads him to fail.

The practical impact of this is that he ends up having to cave to the moochers in Washington, and turn his steel over to people who don't know how to work, and who have no concept of a work ethic, or the value of self-earned success.  His business fails.  The psychological impact of his contradictions lead him to be tortured, and fractured.  The more he strives to succeed, the more he fails.  He exhausts himself mentally with the battle against what, in the end, he knows he needs to do:  give up all in order to stop giving his world what they ask.  He is unhappy, conflicted, stressed and worn thin.

I hope that those thoughts help you a bit; good luck!