Who AM I?
We are all asked on a regular basis, “What do you do? It seems to be a relatively harmless question. However, your answer is one of the most important answers you will ever give. The way in which you identify yourself determines the way in which anyone you tell will see you.
No other statement is more important to your personal brand or business, than the way you self-identify. An identity statement is also the way you see yourself as well. It signals others to see you in that light.
Identity statements are not limited to business. We tend to self-identify in all areas of our lives. So, what is a Self-Identity Statements are primarily statements that begin with, “I am…”
If someone asks you, “So what do you do?” How do you answer? Would you say something such as, “I help companies improve their bottom line through the use of highly advanced propriety technology?” Or would you be more likely to say, I’m a sales professional with XYZ, corp.” Both are identity statements. The first response, however, actually answers the question without identifying you as a person, without labeling your work title, with what you actually do. Anyone in the company could say the same thing from the janitor to the CEO.
If you can distill your company’s mission statement into a short, concise, statement you will have created a healthy identity statement. Rather than what your job title, which is of no value to others, you have established in the mind of the questioner what it is you do.
How many times to we do and hear things such as:
“I am a sales person”
“I am a janitor”
“I am fat”
“I am a slow learner”
“I am too old”
“I am too young”
When you make statements like these you are putting yourself in a box in the mind of yourself and others that is almost impossible to escape. What makes these statements so powerful is that they express your beliefs and most people will not challenge a person’s belief structure. And, it is almost impossible to change beliefs once they are deeply implanted. There are ways to do it, but most are not willing to do so.
It is very tempting to use the old identity statements you’ve been using, even if you’re conscious of doing so. However, we most often don’t do this consciously. You may “believe” you are answering with a conscious response, when in reality you have created such a strong neural pathway in response to your personal identity that the answer you think of is actually a subconscious response that is rationalized in the executive part of your mind.
The most detrimental thing self-identity statements affect is you. If your weight is excessive and you say “I’m fat” and you repeat that in your mind or in your words, you most likely never change that identity.
You will continue to be fat regardless of what “diets” you try, gyms you join, etc. You have created a version of yourself that your subconscious has accepted, and one of the top things the human subconscious mind hates more than nearly anything is change. The same holds true with all other identity statements.
If you are going to create a self-identity, why not make it something positive. Identity statements go a long way toward creating and promoting a powerfully positive identity for your brand. If your identity statements are negative or limiting or negative, then your personal brand will most likely be the same.
It is very difficult to promote yourself in a positive professional light, when that light is dimmed by a negative self-identity. To create a positive, enticing and desirable brand for yourself if your mind is focused on a limiting belief.
If you want others to believe in you, trust you, and be drawn to you, you must project a positive self-identity. So, stop using words that create negative thought patterns in your mind. Instead of saying, “I’m too old,” maybe you could say my age gives me a strategic advantage because with age comes experience, and with experience comes wisdom.
Human’s typically have between 40 and 60 thousand thoughts every day. If you’re going to be talking to yourself anyway, wouldn’t it be more profitable, productive and pleasant if that self-talk were making you a more confident, stronger, effective, and successful person?
About the Author
James G. Springer is a 30+ year veteran in sales management and sales training. He has owned or managed numerous sales organizations. Additionally, he is a highly skilled and trained in a variety of verbal and non-verbal modalities, giving him a very special skill set which makes him uniquely qualified to Speak, Train, Coach and Consult in all aspects of Interpersonal Communication Skills.
His Unique Skill Set Includes: Body Language, Micro Expressions, Deception Analysis, Personality Profiling, Sales Training, Covert / Conversational Hypnosis