The identity question is crucial to success and fulfillment in life. It becomes a crisis when one’s personality is shrouded in uncertainty. And this personality crisis undermines success. It is a bane to success as it is one of the banana peels on the conquestlane to greatness. An identity crisis is a serious threat to success. It can lead to failure and unfulfillment in life. It refers to a state in which one experiences uncertainty about who he or she really is and their proper role in life.
An identity crisis is akin to identity confusion, a situation where one lives in the confusion of their character, goals, and or origins. An identity crisis arises when one is trapped between who they really is and who they want to be. We must conquer the identity crisis. It is one of the conquests we must make to have a fulfilling and rewarding life.
A Typical Example
A young man was always fantasizing about being like one of his role models. He did everything to conform to the identity of his role model. He changed the way he speaks, the way he dresses, his mannerisms, and his values to those of this public figure. Then one day, his father, who had been observing him with much disdain, called him and asked him who he was. The father further asked him, ‘’are you this personality that you want to be like?’’ The young man answered no. His father asked him again, “Who are you then?”. The young man answered his father, “I am Tony, your son”. At this point, the father looked straight into his son’s eyes and said to him, “If you are really my son, then be true to who you are. Be proud of your identity”.
This is a typical and isolated case of the majority who are plagued by identity crises. It is very common these days, especially among our youth. Nowadays, you see people perm their hair, grow dreadlocks, and sag their pants. They change their names and even their values. Because they want to be like public figures. It is not bad, but do those lifestyles befit your personality? It becomes an identity crisis if it is not on par with your personality. Therefore, an identity crisis arises from the conflict or clash of these values or beliefs with our own personality.
An identity crisis precipitates due to our inability to define our own identity. The truth is that each and every one of us has peculiarities. These unique endowments are what distinguish us from one another. These peculiarities help define our values, beliefs, personality, and hence our identity. The good news is that, like young Tony, you can overcome an identity crisis. However, you must come out from hiding in another man’s shadow. You must face the ‘mirror of reality’. The ‘mirror of reality’ shows you just the way you are. It exposes all the grey areas of your life. It helps you identify your strength of character, your potential, and your capabilities.
Exploring the Unfamiliar Path
Sometimes, in trying to define our identity, we have to explore unfamiliar paths. Most of these paths lead to the distortion and disorientation of our belief and value system. They leave us more confused than we were trying to define our identity. Thus, defining your identity promotes success, while, on the contrary identity crisis undermines success. Identity crisis in all its ramifications, social, psychological, and mental, is very harmful and unhealthy to success. It creates a disconnection from the mainstream or the threshold of success. As I said earlier, the identity question is crucial to success.
The value of identity of course is that so often with it comes purpose – Richard R. Grant
The danger of an identity crisis is that, in the middle of the confusion that ensued, there is no purpose. No one succeeds without being purposeful. It is the consistency of purpose that drives you to success. Hence, you must have a purpose for you to be successful in life. Purpose drives you along the conquest lane and gives you access to the realm of success. On the contrary, a lack of purpose in life is a product of an identity crisis. This results in low self-worth, low self-esteem, an inferiority complex and so on, and these are detrimental to success.
Your identity and your success go hand in hand. Many people sacrifice their identities by not doing what they really want to do. And that’s why they’re not successful. – Lila Swell.
Lila Swell’s quote says it all. You can never succeed when you are not doing what you really want to do. That amounts to an identity crisis. It is inimical to success. It undermines success. Therefore, you must define your identity now to be successful. You must answer the identity question if you want to succeed in life