Many years ago, when I was getting into personal training, I recall receiving some advice that I remember to this day. I think it applies not just to personal training, but to all professions. The advice was this: whatever you are, be more of it. When it comes to personal training and being a real estate agent, what matters far more than my knowledge, experience or resources is who I am as a person.
I’ve never been hired based purely on credentials. Yes, it’s important that I have an education, plenty of experience in the industry and some client testimonials to back me up, but if I don’t make a good first impression, build some rapport and smile, I ain’t gettin’ paid. There will always be somebody more experienced, somebody with more years of education and more 5 star reviews. There’s only 1 number 1 after all. However, I, among countless others, do quite well despite not being number 1.
The reason people do well is because of who they are, not what they’ve done. As my favourite speaker Jim Rohn says, “success is something you attract by the person you become”. Knowing this, we should regularly be asking ourselves who we are. Deep introspection is not reserved for the Jay Shetty’s of the world. Self reflection is a vastly underrated skill, and recognizing who you are is the first step to realizing who you could be.
Ask yourself who you’ll need to be to achieve the version of success you desire. Often times, all you need to do is embrace the traits you already have. Blow up your personality and don’t shy away from your quirks. We live in an era when being hyper niched can be a huge advantage. You won’t be for everybody, but that was already the case, so don’t worry about it.
If you’re a fan of something, don’t just be a fan, be a diehard. Convince the world that you’re so utterly convinced of something that it’s part of who you are. Don’t like things, love things. Don’t dabble, go all in. If you’re driven, drive. If you’re outgoing, talk to literally every person you pass by every day. If you’re reserved, own it and let it fuel your confidence, knowing you’re being the best version of yourself.
After getting into the habit of being entirely genuine with who you know yourself to be, it won’t take long to figure out whether or not you enjoy yourself. It may turn out that by turning up the intensity on your personality, you’ll uncover some things that are what’s holding you back, not propelling you forward. If that’s the case, consider yourself lucky, because now you’re aware of the parts of who you are that may need tweaking. We all evolve over time. It can be either intentional or unintentional. What I suggest is that at the very least, recognize how you’re evolving, even if it’s been unintentional.
You can’t be more of who you are without having a clear understanding of what you’re working with. Get to know yourself so you can decide whether or not you’re satisfied. Only after you’ve figured that out will you be able to be more of it, whatever ‘it’ is.
- Cody