Identity: who are you? Identity is formed, among other things, by genetic predispositions and the experiences we have in our lives.
Our identity is formed by genetic predispositions, by the experiences throughout the course of our lives, by our thoughts, feelings, motives, likes and dislikes and by the resulting behaviours that we adopt in our daily lives. Our social relationships also have an influence on how we perceive and experience ourselves as human beings.
If you want to reflect on your identity, a simple visualisation can help you: your identity is represented by a house with a foundation and a roof. All the parts, character traits, roles and preferences that define you are represented as the supporting pillars of your house. These can be of varying importance. Draw all the important pillars between the foundation and the roof and label them accordingly.
Now you can see what you perceive as forming your identity. Perhaps these are just a few pillars, or perhaps there are so many that they barely fit under your roof. This visualisation is very important when dealing with life crises.
For example, if you have two important pillars in your life and one of them collapses due to a stroke of fate – e.g. you lose your job, a loved one dies, a relationship ends or you can no longer pursue an important hobby due to a physical disability – you are left with just one pillar that now has to support the entire weight of your roof. There is therefore a chance that your house could ‘collapse’ over time, as there are few stabilising factors and resources.
However, if your roof is supported by ten pillars, for example, and one or two fall away, there are still eight or nine left; the chances of your house remaining standing are therefore correspondingly higher than in the first example, as you have several stabilising factors.
Some people fall into a deep crisis of meaning when they lose a pillar. Throughout their lives, they have relied on a single important facet of their existence and paid little attention to other potentially helpful things. These people often need a long time to rebuild new pillars that they find supportive and sustainable and that help them to regain their psychological stability.
Identity: who are you? Reflecting on our identity helps us to get to know ourselves well and understand ourselves better and better. With the insights we gain, we can in turn organise our lives in a self-determined way according to our strengths, wishes and passions.
Are you reflecting on your identity? What defines you? Who are you? And more importantly: who do you want to be?
Let’s talk about it in a free initial session!
#identity #experiences #predisposition #relationships #life
