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When you’re going after big goals, you’ll inevitably experience pain.

Sometimes that pain is from the discomfort of taking actions you’re afraid to make.

Other times that pain is from the results (or lack of results) that you get even if you’re taking action.

Many call these “growing pains.”

In psychology, this is known as Cognitive Dissonance.

That is, the pain you feel when your actions or results don’t match your self-image.

Experience enough cognitive dissonance and even if you’re making progress towards your goals, you’ll end up self-sabotaging:

• You start to procrastinate

• You talk to yourself negatively

• You avoid new opportunities

• You go into resistance mode

• You distract yourself with cheap dopamine

And all this because you are, in essence, not in alignment.

From here you have two ways to go about things:

1. Abandon your goals and start to match your actions with your current self-image (and possibly live in regret)

2. Upgrade your self-image so that it starts to match your goals and next level actions

For me, I’d choose the second way. And in many ways it is the harder road to take.

But if you know what to do, it becomes just a little bit easier.

If you’re like me and you’re drawn to the second option, then we need to go through an Identity Shift.

Identity Shifting

People always act in alignment with who they believe they are.

Whether consciously or subconsciously.

If you believe yourself to be a lazy person, you will find that you tend to act that way and you’ll have a hard time putting in effort.

If you believe yourself to be a productive person, you will find that when you aren’t getting things done you become tough on yourself.

Our identity or self-image has that big of an influence on our actions, reactions, and ultimately the reality we create.

Identity shifting helps you become a conscious creator of your life.

I believe heavily in this because I’ve seen in my personal life that whenever I experienced a permanent transformation it’s all from becoming a completely different person.

From when I was having a hard time attracting a girlfriend and now being married to the love of my life.

To when I was financially dependent and now having financially stability.

The version of Zach who was having a hard time attracting a girlfriend and financially dependent is completely different from the version of Zach now that is married to the love of his life and financially stable.

So if who you are remains unchanged, you will have a harder time creating the results you want in your life.

Or you may get the results you want, but it isn’t permanent and you go back down to failure.

This graphic illustrates this point better.

At the core, is our identity. This concept of self influences our actions, which later influences our results.

The mistake that most people make is that they focus too much on the actions while neglecting the fundamental aspect of “Being”.

For there to be lasting change, there must be a shift in the core of who you see yourself to be.

How to Create an Identity Shift

There are 2 simple steps in creating an identity shift.

Step 1: Find Clarity

You first have to become clear on what you want. This is usually clarity on what result you want to have. This is where vision casting and goal setting come into play.

For example: The result you want is to become financially stable on the road to financial freedom.

Once you have clarity on the result, find clarity in the new identity you want to form.

So if the result you want is to have financial stability, can you describe the type of person that can create financial stability effortlessly?

For me, this person is responsible, resourceful, and organized.

Step 2: Work on Adopting This New Identity

All you have to do to work on becoming this new version of yourself is to act in alignment with this new version.

Drawing from the previous example, you can ask yourself:

• What actions would a responsible person do today?

• How would a resourceful me take action today?

• What can I do that would show I am organized?

By acting in alignment to this new version, you gather evidence for your brain that you are slowly becoming this new type of person.

Affirmations can help with adopting this new identity.

Do this for a long enough time and you will have shifted your identity into this new version of yourself.

In Conclusion

People always act in alignment with who they believe they are.

If you want to create lasting change, start by working on the core of who you are — your identity.

People think that who they are is fixed and cannot be changed — but that is just a limiting belief that stops you from the life that you truly deserve.

Who you are can change, it just takes intentionality and consistent action over time.

If you have any questions on identity shifting, feel free to reply to this email and let’s have a conversation about it! I’m happy to help you find further clarity.

All the love,
All the power,

— Zach Mar

P.S. Whenever you are ready, there are 3 ways that I can be of help to you:

1. Book a free kick-off conversation for one-on-one coaching here if you are a financial advisor — I’ll help you double your case size using identity shifting.

2. Follow me on Instagram here if you want a source of bite-sized ideas and content that can help you become a high-achiever.

3. Download my goal setting guide here if you are wanting to create clarity on your desired outcomes (Free until 100 downloads — and then I convert it to a paid resource).

P.P.S. If you are from the Philippines and are looking for a personal mastery workshop to help you experience growth and transformation, check out Discovery by I Am Plus Coaching and Training Systems. It’s where my journey of self evolution personally got fast-tracked.