I’ll do it myself!

As we grow, there comes a point in our young lives that we in some way express, I’ll do it myself!

Fast forward, years, perhaps decades, that turning point often becomes a key aspect of our current identity. There are both pros and cons to the identity linked to “I’ll do it myself” in our current culture, independence is celebrated; individuality expected and supported.

Neither right nor wrong, our current culture often pushes us into a corner which shames us into expressing our rugged individualism. This inner story we tell ourselves can be one of the large stumbling blocks on our spiritual journey.

Identity speaks more to our relationship to the inner story we tell ourselves, perhaps how we relate to our ego or the various personas that make up our ego… but let’s not get caught up in our intellects too long… bottom line, our identy/s (ego, persona, etc.) helps ground us and guide us through this seemingly ungrounded and challenging world.

In these times of uncertainty, our identities can become both a place to go for relief but also a prison that keeps us locked in. A way you can explore whether your identifications have you grounded or locked away is by looking within at how you identify yourself. Take a look at the identity wheel below and highlight the top 4-5 ways you identify yourself of you think others identify you.

Now that you’ve identified your top 4 or 5, narrow it down to your top one or two. Once you’ve done that, cross one of your top ones off the list. As you do, note how you feel.

Ask yourself what you would be without that identity. Explore within to notice what thoughts and emotions emerge. You’re likely noticing your deep attachments to the inner story you’ve been telling yourself about who you are. Further you may be noticing a glimpse of some new freedom as you notice that you are much more than the story which identify with so closely.

If you’d like to explore this further, I’d be glad to hear from you.