Returning to James Clear and his book Atomic Habits, I would like to highlight something today I consider particularly significant. He talks about the many ways in which our identity is the result of habits which are either reinforced by the outside or we ourselves enforce through positive—or negative—things we constantly tell ourselves.

Clear says that the more we repeat a behavior, the more we reinforce the identity of that behavior. In other words, if you make your bed each day you reinforce the identity of a neat person; when you write each day, the identity of a creative person; when you train each day, the identity of an athletic person.

By contrast, if you say to yourself “This is too hard for me” or “I will never get this right” you reinforce ideas, and habits, that will actually prevent you from making progress.

Here is The Lightbulb Moment for me this week. There is a huge difference between saying “I play the piano” and “I am a pianist.” The second one means that you define yourself as someone who is repeatedly embodying the habits of someone who associates herself with all the habits related to a pianist: the discipline, the practice, the study and all the endless hours of hard work. It is not merely something where you sit down and play whenever it feels comfortable.  It is a way by which you determine part of your being.

Notice that I did not say it is your entire being. Instead, it is just one of many aspects of who you are that helps you to define your identity in the world because you take on all of the habits that are part of being a pianist.  A person who identifies as a doctor is not just a doctor when in the office. His being a doctor means that habits of research, investigation, and inquiry, observation and problem solving are part of his everyday life, no matter where he is.  

To identify yourself as a pianist then, versus just saying I play the piano, is to incorporate into your life, on a daily basis, all of the habits, ideas, and attitudes of someone who has chosen this as a self-definition and whose self-image is informed by everything that goes into becoming a pianist. 

In order to be truly successful as a pianist in terms of your identity then, start thinking of your abilities being a function of many habits that you practice daily which help to define how you approach your studies. Identify yourself as a pianist who does all the work of someone with that title, and watch your habits grow and expand to reflect this identity. Say things to yourself that help you to enforce these ideas like:

• As a pianist, I believe in the power of practicing every day as much as possible

• As a pianist, I take very seriously the need to research each composition I play as much as possible

• As a pianist, I constantly work to give my best to a piece of music so that I can interpret it as fully as possible

Create within yourself the habits that are compatible with this part of your identity, and you will see your talents continue to blossom.

Change your identity, and your habits will follow.