Welcome to Transition Edge, I'm Grant Symons, your host for insights into the world of
transition.
As we navigate change together and explore
diverse perspectives that may influence our future, why not share the journey and forward Transition Edge to friends eager for interesting and perhaps challenging insights. "Let's travel this path together—one perspective at a time."
Over the past weeks, we've been on a journey together exploring the concept of identity change and its potential in our lives. We've discussed the stories of well-known individuals who reshaped their identities, delved into the dimensions of identity, and now, it's time to bring it all together and reflect on what these insights might mean for our future.
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Early in his career, James Hunt served as the lead for the New York Drug Enforcement Task Force in the position of Associate Special Agent-in-Charge. He was known for his uncompromising work on the front line, coming face to face and in combat with criminals on a daily basis. But
when he returned home after work, he was a different person, rarely discussing his profession with his wife and never with wider family.
Hunt
had very different professional and family identities and went on to evolve these through his career, as most of us do.
Identity change is inevitable.
Let's acknowledge that our identities naturally evolve over time. Whether we're aware of it or not, the experiences, relationships, and life events we encounter shape who we are.
Why not take a proactive approach to this natural evolution? Why not be more conscious, aware, and intentional about the changes we want to make in our identities?
Our Identities express who we are.
Our identities are not just labels or roles we play; they are expressions of our values, beliefs, and aspirations. Perhaps embracing identity change intentionally, even in a small way might open a pathway to becoming closer to our true selves, especially if we are stuck, unhappy or in a rut.
Through the identities we become, we send powerful signals to the world about what we value and what matters to us. Think of it as role modelling for
ourselves and others.
Are we role modelling what we truly desire?
Are the identities we currently inhabit aligning with the future we want to create for ourselves and for the world?
Are we role modelling the values and behaviours that reflect the kind of society we wish to build? Are we becoming our best possible version of ourselves if we look through the eyes of the next generation?
Organisational theorist and consultant Dr Ichak Adizes suggests that greater clarity and alignment can enrich our lives. While such alignment or realignment is a lifelong process as our
context changes, it can be a liberating one that provides new freedom and energy as we go.
