Identity Shifting: How to Get Ahead of 99% of People (in 2024)

Summary

The video discusses a 3-step process to reinvent yourself when you feel stuck in life. First, tune into the emotional pain you may be feeling as a signal for change. Next, envision an exciting future 2.0 version of yourself across work, relationships and lifestyle. Write it down and revisit it daily as inspiration. Finally, take daily actions that reinforce this new identity, rather than waiting for motivation. Follow the ready, fire, aim approach of doing before overpreparing. Small steps compound to build momentum towards realizing your vision of the best life possible.

Takeaways

• 😞 Recognize and learn from the pain and dissatisfaction in your life
• 😃 Get excited about the possibilities and your future vision for yourself
• 📝 Design your ideal future self - how you will work, rest and play
• ⏰ Revisit your vision and goals every morning and evening
• 🚀 Set aspirational goals to tap into excitement and motivation
• 👀 When you see others succeeding, get inspired rather than compared
• 🗓️ Make a specific action plan to bridge the gap to your goals
• 🎭 Reinforce your desired identity by acting as your future self daily
• 🏋️‍♀️ Take action first, motivation comes after starting
• ❌ Overcome procrastination by showing up daily as a professional

Q & A

What is the first step Clark suggests to reinvent yourself?

The first step is to become aware of and tune into any emotional or mental pain you may be feeling on a day-to-day basis. This "pain teacher" can provide important lessons and motivation to create change.

What does Clark say negative emotions are a call to action for?

Clark says negative emotions are like warning signs or gauges telling you to make a change, similar to physical pain directing you to take action to relieve the pain.

What are the 3 areas Clark suggests considering for your vision of your ideal self?

The 3 areas are: work - what you want your job/income to look like; rest - lifestyle, relationships, health goals; and play - adventures, travel aspirations.

Why does Clark recommend setting an aspirational hourly wage?

It sets a bold, exciting target to motivate you and tap into feelings of inspiration and possibility rather than limitation.

What did Clark write on his wall to reinforce his income goal?

He wrote "By the end of this year I will make $10,000 of self-generated income" on a piece of wallpaper and looked at it daily.

What percentage of the study group who made a specific workout plan followed through?

91% of the group who wrote down a specific time and place to work out completed at least 1 workout per week, compared to only 35% of the other groups.

What does Clark say is key to shifting your identity?

Reinforcing your new identity by taking small actions daily that align with and confirm that identity shift.

What does Clark say professionals do regardless of motivation?

True professionals show up every day to do the work, whether they feel motivated or inspired to or not.

What principle does Clark suggest instead of ready, aim, fire?

He suggests "ready, fire, aim" - get set up then get started, course correcting as you go rather than overplanning.

What does Clark say is often the root cause behind procrastination?

He says the root is usually not laziness, but rather not knowing what action to take next.

Outlines

00:00

😞 Feeling Stuck and Realizing You Need to Reinvent Yourself

The paragraph discusses that feeling when you realize you need to reinvent yourself and change the direction your life is going. It compares momentum in space to momentum in life, stating that unless an outside force acts upon you, you'll keep drifting farther away. It suggests that to change your trajectory, you need to metaphorically take a "fire extinguisher" and give your life a nudge in a new direction.

05:02

😃 Envision and Design Your Dream 2.0 Self

The paragraph advises to create an aspirational 2.0 version of yourself and your ideal life across three areas - work, rest, and play. It suggests setting big goals to tap into excitement and motivation. Looking at others ahead inspires rather than compares. Revisiting this vision daily is key to manifestation.

10:03

🚀 Take Action to Bridge the Gap Between Current and Future Self

The paragraph explains that it's not enough to just envision your ideal self, you must bridge the gap with concrete action. It shares a study showing that groups with specific workout plans had much higher follow-through than those only told why to workout. It suggests reinforcing your new identity by doing small actions daily, using the mantra "ready, fire, aim" rather than waiting until you feel fully prepared.

Keywords

💡Reinvent Yourself

Reinventing oneself refers to the process of undergoing significant changes in one's life, habits, or career to achieve a fundamentally different and improved state of being. In the context of the video, it's presented as a method to change the momentum of one's life, moving from a passive, unfulfilled existence to actively shaping one's destiny. The speaker uses the metaphor of Sandra Bullock in 'Gravity' using a fire extinguisher to alter her trajectory in space as an analogy for making a deliberate effort to change one's life direction.

💡Pain Teacher

The 'Pain Teacher' is a concept introduced in the video that suggests pain and dissatisfaction can be powerful motivators for change. By acknowledging and learning from the discomforts and challenges in our lives, we can identify areas in need of transformation. The speaker shares his personal story of feeling isolated and directionless as a means to illustrate how recognizing one's pain can be the first step towards reinvention.

💡Momentum

Momentum, as used in the video, is a metaphor for the trajectory of one's life. Drawing from physics, where an object in motion stays in motion unless acted upon by an external force, the speaker relates this principle to individuals' lives, suggesting that without conscious effort to change, people will continue on their current path indefinitely. The notion underlines the importance of active intervention to alter one's life direction.

💡Sunday Scaries

The 'Sunday Scaries' refers to the anxiety and dread many people feel on Sunday evenings, anticipating the return to work or school the next day. The speaker mentions this phenomenon to highlight a common experience of dissatisfaction and unrest with one's current life situation, emphasizing the urgency for change and reinvention.

💡Vision of Self 2.0

The 'Vision of Self 2.0' is about creating a detailed and aspirational image of oneself in the future, encompassing personal, professional, and recreational aspirations. In the video, this concept is proposed as a second step for reinvention, where individuals imagine an ideal version of themselves, using it as a blueprint for the changes they wish to implement in their lives. It serves as a motivational tool that encapsulates one's goals and desires.

💡Designing a Dream Character

Designing a Dream Character involves crafting a detailed persona that represents who one wishes to become. This process, as described in the video, includes defining traits, habits, and goals that align with one's aspirations. It's a strategic approach to self-improvement that leverages the power of visualization to foster excitement and motivation towards achieving personal transformation.

💡Aspirational Hourly Wage

The concept of an 'Aspirational Hourly Wage' is introduced as part of envisioning one's future success. It involves setting a high, seemingly unattainable income goal to motivate oneself to pursue higher earnings. The speaker shares his own experience of setting an hourly wage of $1,000 as an example, demonstrating how ambitious financial goals can inspire effort and innovation.

💡Identity Shifting

Identity Shifting refers to the process of adopting a new set of beliefs, behaviors, and attitudes that align with one's desired self-concept. The video suggests that to successfully reinvent oneself, it's crucial to not only envision a new identity but also to begin living in accordance with it through daily actions and decisions, thereby reinforcing the new identity until it becomes integrated into one's sense of self.

💡Action Plan

An Action Plan, as discussed in the video, is a detailed strategy outlining specific steps to achieve one's goals. The necessity of an action plan is emphasized in the context of bridging the gap between current circumstances and the envisioned future. The speaker underscores that without a concrete plan, including when and where to take action, aspirations remain intangible and are unlikely to be realized.

💡Ready Fire Aim

The phrase 'Ready Fire Aim' represents an approach to taking action that prioritizes execution over prolonged planning. Contrary to the conventional 'Ready Aim Fire' sequence, which may lead to overthinking and procrastination, this strategy encourages immediate action and adjusting the course as needed. The speaker advocates for this approach as a means to overcome inertia and start making tangible progress towards reinventing oneself.

Highlights

Learn from negative emotions as a call to action to change your life's momentum

Design a detailed vision of your ideal future self to tap into excitement and motivation

Set an aspirational hourly wage to stretch your income goals

Focus on excitement when you see others succeeding, not comparison or self-doubt

Revisit your future vision every morning and night to reinforce it

60% of my original future vision came true through persistence and action

Bridge the gap between your current and ideal selves with specific action plans

Reinforce your new identity by doing small actions daily that confirm it

Take action first before overanalyzing if you're ready - use the "ready, fire, aim" mindset

Don't wait for motivation, just show up - motivation comes from taking the first step

Overcome procrastination by building momentum, not waiting for inspiration

Compare yourself to who you were yesterday, not who someone else is today

Turn painful emotions into fuel and motivation for the life you want

Stay conscious of dissatisfaction instead of numbing yourself with distractions

Objects in motion stay in motion unless acted on by an outside force - change your life's momentum

Transcripts

maybe it's a new year changing jobs

changing cities out of a relationship

maybe you wake up one day you look

yourself in the mirror and you say damn

really thought she'd be further ahead by

now whenever it is we've all probably

gotten that feeling of pit in our

stomach that it was time to reinvent

ourselves I want to show you how to

reinvent yourself in three steps

[Music]

I was watching the movie Gravity the

other day you know where Sandra

Bullock's in space there's a scene

towards the end where she has a fire

extinguisher and she's out there in

space and she's spraying it because she

has no other way to get to her

destination

pretty intense what's scary about that

is that you probably know that in space

unless something hits you once you're on

a trajectory You're Gone Forever there's

no turning back you will just keep

floating and floating and floating

further and further and further away

into the dark abyss Abyss that's because

there's the principle of momentum and if

you remember an object in motion stays

in motion unless acted upon by an

outside force your life works much in

the same way most people if you look at

how they're operating through life

they're sort of sleep walking through it

they don't really stop and pause and say

wait did I actually choose this life or

was it chosen for me if you really want

to change your life reinvent yourself

what that's really saying is I want to

change the momentum I want to change the

direction so I'm not just floating

mindlessly through space I want to

metaphorically take my own fire

extinguisher and just give it a little

nudge like a little sometimes that's all

it takes to nudge you in a different

direction so I have a question and

there's no judgment here but if you

really took your life the last 90 days

and you were doing that for the next

five years

would you be satisfied would you end up

in the spot you wanted to be and if the

answer is no unless you stop that

momentum what's gonna change so the

first big Point here to reinvent

yourself I call this the pain teacher

you need to actually recognize it and

invite it in and learn from it a bit of

a personal story if that's okay I find

that these help you connect dots 10

years ago I was broke living in my mom's

basements uh cold gray Seattle Super

isolated didn't have many friends and I

was just looking around and I saw people

get jobs that they weren't stoked on

commit to relationships that they

weren't stoked on just kind of go on

autopilot like this momentum just took

them and sucked them away and culture

and Society kind of has this like Mantra

well yeah life's a then you die

suck it up right so I went along with it

throughout College you know I worked

jobs that I really didn't like every

Sunday I would just dread getting up for

Mondays they even have a term for that

now it's called what the Sunday scaries

where you're sitting there Sunday night

you're freaking out because you know the

next day you got to do it all over again

then you get that little taste of

freedom on the weekends and let's be

honest most people party so they can't

even enjoy it because they're so

exhausted we have so many chores to do

or so much of life just happens in those

two days because that's for you that's

when you can really live because the

other five days of a week are so drained

by doing things you don't want to do by

working with people you don't choose by

getting up and commuting to a job that

paying the bills but like if you're

honest you wouldn't work I was there too

most people try to numb themselves from

the pain because it's painful drink a

lot they party a lot they just zone out

they watch TV because it puts them in a

hypnotic translate state or social media

their screen times probably like 10

hours a day right and I get it I was

there too but the first way to change

your life is to not numb yourself is to

become conscious of the pain and become

aware of it and so when I really paused

and took an inventory I was like this is

what I don't want right now I'm

experiencing like let me not run away

from this feeling let me channel this

let me like tune into the pain teacher

and what this is trying to teach me so

if you're dissatisfied right now that's

a good thing because you can learn

important lessons that if you don't

forget are some of the strongest

motivation in the same way that if

you're walking on a hot pavement the

pain is telling you to go find some

shade go put on some shoes or you're

gonna burn yourself negative emotions

are a call to action that's all they are

if you have a headache that is a sign

that you should drink water if you have

a pain in your chest sometimes that's a

sign that you are sick in the same way

physical negative pain translates to hey

fix something it's a warning sign it's

like a gauge on your dashboard that

flashes and says pull over check your

engine I think you're mental your

emotional pain that you're experiencing

on a day-to-day the negative feelings

are just another gauge on your dashboard

flashing hey check something change the

momentum dude because until you do until

you become aware of it it's just gonna

continue you're gonna wake up every

Sunday night with the Sunday scaries and

you're just gonna go go go and the

momentum's just gonna carry carry carry

you further and further floating in

space

fire extinguisher into the dark abyss

[Music]

so now that you have what you don't want

you're ready to start tapping into the

fun part step number two is to start

creating this 2.0 vision of yourself the

pleasure who you are in five years if

everything goes right this is what we

call designing a dream character just

like a movie or a game they have

characters in them don't the writers

design them they give them all the

traits storylines quirks uh habits rough

edges that people can connect to with

them before they film the move you need

to do this for yourself what this does

is it allows you to tap into one of the

strongest emotions out there you know

what that is

excitement

real excitement like the reason people

are in a different mood all of December

because Christmas is building up they're

excited they're looking forward to

something the reason people turn it

around when they're in a job and they

got two weeks of vacation coming up and

they like are in a good mood it's

because they're excited about something

the reason that when you fall in love

and that's all you think about is that

person because it's new you're so

excited about them so if you really want

to change your life get really excited

about this new character this new

version of you when I was in my mom's

basement like yeah it sucked and I was

in debt and I was in a lot of pain but I

also got real real excited about the

possibilities and I would see people

online talking about making all this

money and living freedom and digital

Nomad and everything that sounded really

cool and I I would read these books like

the four hour work week and it would

talk about living a life on your terms

and a freedom and it got me so excited I

was like holy cow this is possible this

is what's crazy to me is some people see

that online I think in in this year you

notice the conversation and they say oh

well screw those people they'll be in

such a Negative headspace that that's

not even possible that they could do it

that wasn't never my spot when I didn't

have it I was never like screw that

person for having it I was like holy cow

that's possible that's awesome like you

made 30 Grand in a month I'm making like

maybe two how did you do that teach me

your ways so a sub Point here is when

you start seeing people further ahead on

this path of you never compare never get

like down on yourself that's an example

of how you can Channel excitement right

there in that moment to fuel you instead

of being crushed by it three areas that

you might want to take in this vision of

you work rest and play work what do you

want your job to look like what do you

how do you want to make your money how

much money do you want one thing here

set an aspirational hourly wage when I

was 1.0 Clark in Seattle I set an hourly

rage for a thousand dollars an hour I

was like is the craziest like a thousand

dollars in one hour work that's crazy

that's an example of an aspirational

hourly wage I was making probably ten

dollars an hour rest goals these are

things that you want to be what do you

want your body to look like how do you

want your relationships to look what is

your lifestyle like as this 2.0 you and

your Play Goals these are Adventure

again I set the goal I'd never really

traveled much I wanted to go overseas to

Southeast Asia I wanted to backpack

around I wanted to see the worlds like

the four hour work week was telling me

and it was only in setting that goal

that I was able to tap into the

excitement of that energy and like flash

forward and see myself doing it and be

like oh that looks like fun okay and

then it motivated me to take the actions

and do it the last step of this revisit

this every single morning and every

single evening put it somewhere where

you can see this like dream character of

yourself look at your goals every single

day when I did this for the first time

um I believe it was in Napoleon Hills

Think and Grow Rich that I got it out of

it said set an ideal Target number for

yourself and look at that thing every

morning and every night in fact post it

right above your bed where you can sit

up there and look at it so I did I set a

goal of I want to make ten thousand

dollars in self-generated income by the

end of this year just crazy for me it

was literally a janitor in college I

worked like three jobs at once and I was

just listening to these books on on

audio and so I did I cut out this little

extra wallpaper brick that I had on my

wall to try and make it look fancy and I

wrote by the end of this year I will

make ten thousand dollars of

self-generated income again had no clue

how that was gonna happen and so I

started a podcast time in my life but

what was really crazy to me is at the

end of the year it's time to do taxes

the most fun time of year right and I'm

adding up all the invoices I'm like okay

how much did I make wasn't 11 wasn't

nine I made over ten thousand dollars of

self-generating income by the end of the

year that's when my jaw hit the floor

and I'm like holy crap there's something

to this designing that dream version of

yourself and seeing it every day and

working towards it I started doing

exactly what I'm telling you designed

the 2.0 you write out exactly how you

think feel and act and see it every day

I'm not even kidding conservatively I'd

say 60 of everything I put in that

Vision in college in my little dorm room

when I had nothing has come true not

instantly not without work but it came

true everything from touring

internationally in a professional band

which is just freaking crazy like

opening for some of the biggest names

playing to 30 000 people when I didn't

even have a band being here in a hot

environment in Arizona with a dog and a

relationship on a golf course instead of

like cold gray gloomy Seattle million

YouTube subscribers again I'm not

bragging I'm just like inspiring you

that when you inspire yourself and you

revisit it every day this stuff is crazy

and it works that's what I did in

college and uh it evolved since then we

have this it's called the manifesto this

is something we ship out to every single

one of our metamorphic clients and our

whole program is on that it's like

helping you identify this 2.0 you but

also like shift into it and totally

transform your subconscious mind in 10

weeks pretty cool no pressure but if

you're interested in that and this is

hitting with you resonating I'll link

down below where you can speak to one of

our coaches for free and learn more

[Music]

number three this is the most important

one because not enough to just identify

what you don't want to identify what you

do want you actually have to bridge the

gap let me tell you a quick study

because I think this sums up this point

wonderfully it was 2001 and there was a

group of around 250 people in the UK

they were all trying to get fit get

their six-pack abs back it was Beach

season around the corner I hear there's

some great beaches in London so the

researchers split these people into

three groups group number one didn't do

anything they're just gonna say hey

track how much you work out group number

two what they did to this group is they

said track how much you work out but

also here's some like motivation on why

you should work out on the benefits of

improving your heart health on improved

immune system and like all the other

health benefits they gave them a

motivational talk now this is where it

gets cool because the third group they

did the same rah-rah motivation told

them to track everything but they also

did one more important step they said

hey write a specific time and place that

you're gonna work out by the end of the

study groups one and two thirty five

percent of them worked out at least one

time a week but the third group who had

a specific time and place action plan of

how they were going to make it happen

had a 91

completion rate on one workout a week or

more it's easy for us to listen to the

YouTube videos it's easy for us to read

the self-help books it's easy for us to

go to the motivational events and get

really inspired but unless you have like

a specific action plan of how I hate to

say it but that study shows that it's in

one ear out the other so back to you

what is your plan how are you going to

act to bridge the gap every single day

we're talking about identity shifting

here and this is super powerful because

it's not enough to just design this 2.0

version of you I found that you have to

reinforce that identity by doing

something every day that confirms it so

if the goal is to become a YouTuber well

film writes do your videos every day and

in doing that at first it feels fake

like oh I'm an imposter what I'm gonna

be a YouTuber I don't even have any

videos I don't have any subscribers but

as soon as you start doing the videos

and learning and researching and getting

camera gear and like playing around with

it you eventually start to reinforce the

identity that I this is just something I

do I am a YouTuber I like the principal

ready fire aim most people Ready Aim

Fire but they get caughts in the ready

and the aim and when it comes time to

fire they're like oh is this lined up

perfectly should I should I realign the

site maybe this is the wrong target

that's where they get in their heads you

have to do is ready fire aim yes get

your setup but then you just go and then

you readjust after a lot of people use

Preparation as a form of procrastination

ain't this the truth they say oh I just

gotta prepare a little bit more I gotta

learn a little bit more and then I'll be

motivated to take the action but that's

not actually true because if you're

waiting for motivation to take action

you're going to be waiting for a real

long time true professionals show up

every day regardless of how they if I

had waited till when I felt really

inspired and really like tuned in and

inflow every single time before I filmed

a video I'd still be at like 50 videos

that's just being honest professional

bodybuilders or people who have a really

aesthetic physique will tell you if they

just waited until they felt like working

out pretty much every day they don't

actually feel like working out but

they're professional that's why they get

themselves to go to the gym and then

once they're there they feel motivated

and the workout is business as usual so

don't feel like you have to wait for

motivation to do what you want to do

motivation's sort of a myth in that way

I find that a lot of the motivation

comes from actually taking that first

step ready fire aim if you want some

help on this we're happy to talk to you

a link down below where you can get a

free coaching call with one of our

coaches speaking of taking action

procrastination is one of the biggest

things people say of why they don't so

what I'll do now is I'll link up right

here our guide to being 80 more

productive than most people it's not

what you think we're gonna talk about

how to overcome your procrastination

because at the root of it is not

laziness or that you don't know what to

do I'll see you in that video take care