Crystallizing identity.

ONE HUNDRED DAY COUNTDOWN

New beginnings take place constantly. When you thread them together, you get a lasting experience.

I started my 100-day countdown on Sunday, May 28, 2017, a new beginning, to a new beginning, that will culminate on Monday, September 4, 2017; the launch of my website, which includes videos, ebook, blogs and more.

I am a process oriented person who believes strongly in the fact that only humans tell stories. It then makes sense that I will transmit the narrative of this exciting process as the days progress.

This is a perfect example of the process; I can countdown my progress.

90 days to go: Tuesday, June 6, 2017

It’s all a matter of identity. We are told to be authentic, we are taught how to create our personal branding, yet “who” is the one to do all this? One of the main reasons, in spite of investing the effort in training and resources to be the best and most successful, we often end up feeling “less than” or that something is missing, is because we don’t do the hard-preparatory work of figuring out “who” is supposed to be authentic or “who” it is we are supposed to brand.

We want the quick fix, the shortcut, the listicles. Reality check: The more we choose the fast route, the more time it will take. If this sounds like the old expression, measure twice, cut once, it is, because it makes sense; both literally and figuratively.

We are told to be flexible. True, but not to the point of fragmentation. We are told to have a core identity. True, but not to the point of stagnation.

There have been different times in my life when my sense of self has been shaken up. I am going through one of those times now as I am designing and launching my new website and everything connected to that launch. This process is challenging me to ask the question again; who am I?

My first step towards defining who I am was to find the means, the language, through which to articulate my identity. And so, as part of who I am, I turn to the language of metaphors.

LANGUAGE AND METAPHORS

Our awareness of self and the meanings we attribute to our experiences are all expressed and communicated through language. As our first language is nonverbal, we carry it with us as we develop our verbal language.

Michael Michalko (2012) states that creativity requires looking at the world in a different way. When we think metaphorically we utilize our ability to imagine. Our imagination is given expression through the non-verbal and verbal language of metaphors. The metaphor is "out there" to make it possible for us to sense and experience things in an unexpected way.

Metaphors permeate human thought and action. As such, becoming conscious of their use, and applying this language in a stimulating and meaningful way, will provide us with the means to creatively express our thoughts, ideas and solutions to the problems being addressed.

Image credit: Pinterest

In the process of writing about my identity, the image of a crystal popped up in my mind. I googled “crystal as a metaphor for identity” and chose this out of the myriad of hits.

“[The comparison of the self to a crystal:] Crystals are multidimensional much like identity. No matter the condition, crystals are still able to exist in different states, sizes, and colors. The more the crystal endures throughout its existence, the more complex and unique it becomes. Identity, on the other hand, becomes more complex and unique by way of discourse and language-base, thus leading to the metaphor known as the "crystallized self".

Image credit: TripAdvisor

My Discourse

I am an integrator. And it is my business to know how to do that and help others do the same. 

I wrote about this tension in a series of blogs called, Why the Duality of Business and Pleasure Does Not Work. 

Are we being our “real” self or are we a “fake”? By investing in this duality, we will be detached from our identity. This question needs to be replaced with questions that will work to pull things together. The questions we need to ask ourselves are related to who I am in relation to myself, others and my environment.

I identify myself as a sensory being, a conscious being and a creative being. These 3 innate abilities form the framework of who I am.

· As a sensory being, I form experiences based on the sensory information I receive, internally and externally.

· As a conscious being, I make associations with these experiences and form meanings.

· As a creative being, I grow and thrive from those experiences and meanings.

As human beings, we need to be aware, engage and integrate all aspects of our identity; how it is shaped, formed internally, and reflected outside of ourselves for us and others to see.

Be yourself, everyone else is already taken. – Oscar Wilde