It's Not Who You Are
SUMMARY
Do you find it difficult to disassociate from what you do during the day when you go home at night?
When you identify yourself by what you do, you bring in a lot of judgment and elements that contribute to your inability to pull back from what you do when you go home at night time, when you go on holidays, or whenever you try to be who you need to be in every other area of your life.
Your work is just part of life; it's not your life. What you do is not who you are.
TRANSCRIPT
Do you find it difficult to disassociate from what you do during the day when you go home at night? Do you find that you define yourself by what you get done during the day?
Hi, this is Grant Herbert, VUCA Leadership and Sustainable Performance Coach, and today I want to continue our conversation around all things leadership by helping you to realise that it's not who you are.
Most people I work with identify themselves by what they do. When you identify yourself by what you do, you bring in a lot of judgment and elements that contribute to your inability to pull back from what you do when you go home at night time.
Your work is just part of life; it's not your life. What you do — whether you've got a title or not — is not who you are.
I'll say it again: What you do is not who you are.
An identity is a deep-seated understanding founded on personal power that allows you to say: "You know what? This is who I am, and in fact, this is who I'm becoming, and I'm happy with who I am. I'm teachable and humble. I've still got a long way to go, and I'm on a journey of imperfection, but I know who I am."
It's underpinned by what's important to you: your priorities, values, morals, and inner characteristics, which are who you are.
If you're not sure what those things are or you've lost them, then step one is to pull back, sit down, and get in a space that inspires you and is quiet. Eliminate the noise and ask yourself: What do I believe in? What's important to me? What are my priorities?
And at the pinnacle of that is your purpose. What are you on the planet for?
So, if you go home at night and you're not able to disassociate from your work, I really want you to consider that's because you've made what you do who you are. Therefore, you carry it around everywhere you go. I'll see you then.
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