6 Things You Need to Know About Who You Are

December 2014 –

The Navy Seal creed opens with these words:

In times of war or uncertainty there is a special breed of warrior ready to answer our Nation’s call. A common man with uncommon desire to succeed. Forged by adversity, he stands alongside America’s finest special operations forces to serve his country, the American people, and protect their way of life. I am that man.

The clarity is unmistakable. No sliver of doubt resides in the identity of a Navy Seal.

There is something potent about a person who is unquestionably certain about who he is.

Knowing who you are as a leader—your identity—is the most important thing about you. If you get your identity right, you will get life and leadership right. If you don’t, you won’t.

Here’s my take on the topic of identity: Your identity is a bold declaration of who you are from God’s point of view.

Based on my own personal pursuit in understanding the importance of knowing your identity, let me relay a few learnings for your consideration:

1. Jesus—our ultimate example—knew who He was. Several times throughout His earthly life He made “I am” statements.
2. If you need some help to kick-start knowing who you are from God’s point of view, upload Ephesians 1.
3. A good way to measure the effectiveness of your identity is that it should bring an anchor to your soul and a spring to your step. It should center you. And then it should inspire you.
4. Your identity should never be at risk. If it is, you’ve got more work to do. (e.g., if your identity was wrapped up in your financial portfolio, it probably was exposed during the fiscal collapse of 2008).
5. Your platform for living out your identity may change, but your identity doesn’t. You may change zip codes or companies, but those simply become the new stage upon which you live out who you are.
6. Knowing that life is full of decisions, having clarity on your identity will help you immeasurably in the ongoing ‘yes or no’ options of life.

Ultimately, knowing and embracing your identity will determine the size of story that you live. Big story? Small story? The choice is yours.

Go big.

I’d love to know how you would state
your identity in a single sentence.
Send me yours, and I’ll send you mine.