MJ DeMarco
I followed the science; all I found was money.
Staff member
FASTLANE INSIDER
EPIC CONTRIBUTOR
LEGACY MEMBER
Read Rat-Race Escape!
Read Fastlane!
Read Unscripted!
I've been trying to mentor a young man in the last year (lets call him "G"), and in doing so, it has provided me with a keen insight into just how "f*cked up* our media, educational, and entertainment complex has brainwashed our youth into accepting mediocrity as state of normalcy.
G is struggling with an identity. He's a first year college student and has no clue what he wants to do with his life. That's not unusual. We've all been there.
However whenever he mentions things of interest (but isn't necessarily good at) he falls back to an "identity label" as an excuse not to pursue it.
Just like he's been trained by Hollywood and their X-men, he is sitting around WAITING for some type of heroic talent to FIND HIM. My guess is he expects to pick up a guitar for the first time in his life, and bam, in 24 hours he's Eddie Van Halen.
Again, we're at EVENT vs PROCESS -- he's looking for an EVENT to provide him with an identity where identity is threaded in a PROCESS. Doing the hard work. Practicing. Learning and failing. Daily rigors and trials. For him, he does NOT want to see this. He only sees the podium and the award.
For much of the world, TALENT has to come from our effort, not from our birthright.
Much of this all comes down to identity labels.
An identity label is a short, succinct description of yourself that is regarded as a permanent state of being, a characteristic that is both inflexible and immune from alteration.
Identity labels are symptomatic to a fixed-mindset.
And identity labels are the primary excuse we see here which prevents GROWTH and ACTION.
Here's an example personal to me.
I'm an introvert. <-- Yes, that's MJ's Identity Label.
And while introversion is more fact than fiction (kind of like being left-handed versus right handed) it DOES NOT define me. A fixed mindset type who is aware of his introversion would avoid ALL interviews and even more, avoid all public speaking. I'm not good at that. I'm an introvert.
But I don't.
Instead I strap on my big-boy pants and understand that I have to WORK HARDER in this area to overcome this state. And after years of practice, I'm happy to say I'm better at it.
And the whole idea of interviews/public speaking is NOT so fearful.
In fact, I can go as far to say that I could do public speaking for a living. That's right. I can speak to a group for a living despite my introversion. How about that for a good 'ole FU!
That's the power of practice. The power of a growth mindset. And the power of catching yourself in an identity label and using it to gird your expectations for discomfort over comfort.
So I leave this with a question for you ...
What identity label are you using RIGHT NOW that could be impeding your growth?
For more on identity, visit here:
*UNSCRIPTED* - Identity Hacking: How to Kill Your Status Quo
G is struggling with an identity. He's a first year college student and has no clue what he wants to do with his life. That's not unusual. We've all been there.
However whenever he mentions things of interest (but isn't necessarily good at) he falls back to an "identity label" as an excuse not to pursue it.
I'm not good at that.
I'm not a good writer.
I'm not a good athlete.
I can't draw.
I can't speak well.
I'm an introvert... (more on this below)
I this..
I that...
I'm not a good writer.
I'm not a good athlete.
I can't draw.
I can't speak well.
I'm an introvert... (more on this below)
I this..
I that...
Just like he's been trained by Hollywood and their X-men, he is sitting around WAITING for some type of heroic talent to FIND HIM. My guess is he expects to pick up a guitar for the first time in his life, and bam, in 24 hours he's Eddie Van Halen.
Again, we're at EVENT vs PROCESS -- he's looking for an EVENT to provide him with an identity where identity is threaded in a PROCESS. Doing the hard work. Practicing. Learning and failing. Daily rigors and trials. For him, he does NOT want to see this. He only sees the podium and the award.
For much of the world, TALENT has to come from our effort, not from our birthright.
Much of this all comes down to identity labels.
An identity label is a short, succinct description of yourself that is regarded as a permanent state of being, a characteristic that is both inflexible and immune from alteration.
Identity labels are symptomatic to a fixed-mindset.
And identity labels are the primary excuse we see here which prevents GROWTH and ACTION.
- I don't know how to code...
- I don't know how to [blank]...
- I know nothing about manufacturing or prototyping...
- My degree is in X so therefore, I'm not trained in Y...
I'm an introvert. <-- Yes, that's MJ's Identity Label.
And while introversion is more fact than fiction (kind of like being left-handed versus right handed) it DOES NOT define me. A fixed mindset type who is aware of his introversion would avoid ALL interviews and even more, avoid all public speaking. I'm not good at that. I'm an introvert.
But I don't.
Instead I strap on my big-boy pants and understand that I have to WORK HARDER in this area to overcome this state. And after years of practice, I'm happy to say I'm better at it.
And the whole idea of interviews/public speaking is NOT so fearful.
In fact, I can go as far to say that I could do public speaking for a living. That's right. I can speak to a group for a living despite my introversion. How about that for a good 'ole FU!
That's the power of practice. The power of a growth mindset. And the power of catching yourself in an identity label and using it to gird your expectations for discomfort over comfort.
So I leave this with a question for you ...
What identity label are you using RIGHT NOW that could be impeding your growth?
For how this pertains to the NEW STAR WARS film, read this post:
Beware! Growth-Killing Identity Labels...
Beware! Growth-Killing Identity Labels...
For more on identity, visit here:
*UNSCRIPTED* - Identity Hacking: How to Kill Your Status Quo
Dislike ads? Become a Fastlane member:
Subscribe today and surround yourself with winners and millionaire mentors, not those broke friends who only want to drink beer and play video games. :-)
Last edited:
Access Restricted: Unlock 1,000,000+ Posts
Stop Peeking Through the Keyhole.
Open the Door.
You hit a wall because the best advice isn't free—it's earned. Since 2007, MJ DeMarco has been active here daily (99.9% active rate), building a war room for entrepreneurs who refuse to settle for mediocrity.
- Active Daily: Life-changing content posted dozens of times every day. No dead threads.
- MJ's Inner Circle: Direct access to the author of The Millionaire Fastlane.
- Vetted Network: Connect with founders scaling to 7 and 8 figures.
- Proven Roadmaps: Strategy over motivation. Execution over "hustle porn."
"SCALED TO 6-FIGURE MONTHS"
"Tips and advice here saved me from huge mistakes, others allowed me to scale my business to 6-figure months."— User MitchC
"INSANE QUALITY OF PEOPLE"
"The number of high quality people I've met from this forum has been insane. All of it predicated on building real value."— User Richard Peck
"You are the average of the five people you surround yourself with."
Are you surrounding yourself with success?
