Identity

I’m one of the owners of Rozzie Fitness, and today I’m going to talk about how it’s possible to change your self-identity if you want to.

A lot of people say they’re “not gym people,” or “aren’t athletic,” or “aren’t coordinated.” These feelings are totally valid. Before I started working out a couple years ago, I didn’t see myself as a gym person either. I was terrible at the Presidential Fitness Test and every sport I played as a kid. My identity as an unathletic person ran deep.

But I’ve come to realize that identity is changeable, and it can actually change pretty quickly.

I was a lawyer before I joined Lianna at Rozzie Fitness. 

This was a terrible choice, as pretty much everyone in my life told me. It was like Billy Elliot, except instead of wanting to be a dancer, I wanted to be a lawyer. 

(In all other ways, my life is nothing like Billy Elliot).

I am non-confrontational and have anxiety, so joining a profession where the goal is to fight with other people and spot every possible problem before it arises did not make me happy. 

But being a lawyer felt like an acceptable way to contribute to society. When I told people I was a lawyer, I felt like they respected me, even if they actually felt sorry for me.

When I left the law to join Rozzie Fitness, the managers at my firm didn’t seem to understand my decision. One of them said, “I hope you find what you’re looking for.” Which is what people say when they don’t hope you’ll find what you’re looking for.

And honestly, I didn’t quite understand my decision, either. What was I? When someone asked me what I did, I always referenced my legal career. 

I’d say, “I work with my wife at a personal training studio, AND I USED TO BE A LAWYER.”

But over the next two and a half years, I came to see myself differently. Now, when someone asks me what I do, I say, “I co-own a personal training studio.” I don’t mention being a lawyer at all.

(In a perfect world, my identity wouldn’t be tied to my profession. But . . . capitalism.)

So what was the key to this shift?

I mentally bought in.

After becoming certified as a personal trainer and becoming more involved in the business, I realized that co-owning a personal training studio fits with my personality and values: It requires problem-solving, creativity, leadership, and helping people.

In the scheme of things, I have almost zero experience as a gym owner. But I’m 100% invested mentally in Rozzie Fitness. I sacrifice other parts of my life to help the studio succeed. I push myself outside my comfort zone when my job requires it.

(For example, I MAKE PHONE CALLS).

And this mental investment resulted in an identity shift. 

If you don’t see yourself as “athletic” or a “gym person,” you can change that. It doesn’t require becoming a professional athlete or hitting the gym 7 days a week. All it requires is making the conscious decision to invest consistently in your goal. 

If you decide that you’re going to work out every week, and you make this a priority even if it means saying no to other things, then after a few months, it won’t make sense for you to say you’re not a gym person. In fact, you might start saying you are a gym person.

Three years ago, when I was sitting at a computer researching objections to interrogatories, I never would have thought I would be comfortable telling people I owned a gym.

Now, it would feel disingenuous to say anything else.