Your Self-Image Drives Your Daily Habits

I was driving to my office one morning and noticed this guy in his mid to late 30’s walking along a path just outside a local park I pass on my way to work. His gait was that of body builder – chest puffed out, arms slightly suspended like that of a pupet, unable to fall neatly along the sides of his body.

I know the walk because I’ve seen if often in various gyms, over the years.

The thing was, this guy did not have the physique of a body builder. But, in his mind he clearly saw himself with the physique of a body builder. His walk told me that.

That faux body builder also got me to thinking about 2009, when I decided to write my first book, Rich Habits.

In that book, I created a fictional character named JC Jobs. JC was world famous and very wealthy. He had sold over half a billion books, was friends with Kings, Presidents, business titans, world leaders and Virtuoso’s within their industry. He was kind, generous and his Rich Habits added value to the lives of millions, helping to lift them out of poverty to become wealthy.

I remember, when I finished writing Rich Habits, I decided at that moment that I would spend the rest of my life trying to be like JC Jobs.

Once I made that decision, my perception of myself dramatically changed.

And once my self-image changed, I began to do things that I thought JC Jobs would do.

JC Jobs was a gifted writer, so I began a write every day. I even started a blog and put all of my research-related articles, on it.

Over time, my writing improved.

JC was a media icon, so I decided to start pitching the articles I was writing to the media. I wrote and pitched every day, as I imagined JC would have done.

Over time, my media pitching improved.

JC was considered the greatest habits expert in the world. I imagined JC read every day, so I too decided to read every day. I read brain books, habit books, books on genetics, behavioral science books, biographies of successful people, etc.

Over time, my knowledge of habits improved.

I did everything I thought JC Jobs would have had to do in order to become the success that he had become.

It took many years of emulating JC before my efforts started to pay off.

And, amazingly to me, they did pay off.

Yahoo Finance emailed me about doing an interview on my book and my research. They brought their camera crew to my office and interviewed me for over two hours. When that interview aired, to e everyone’s surprise, it went viral. We had 2.4 million views in 24 hours.

Dave Ramsey watched my Yahoo Finance viral video. At the time, he had the 3rd largest radio program in the United States – 8 million devoted listeners.

That Ramsey interview led to my nationwide CBS Evening News interview.

My media exposure caught the eye of SUCCESS Magazine. Next thing I knew I was driving into NYC to do an interview with the head of SUCCESS Magazine, Darren Hardy.

Not long after, Money Magazine came knocking on my door for an interview. Then Kiplingers Magazine, MSN, NPR and hundreds of other media outlets, within and without the U.S., all knocked on my door, wanting to learn about my Rich Habits.

Thanks to my daily efforts to be like JC Jobs, my book, Rich Habits, became a huge Amazon bestseller in 2013. My other books also became big bestsellers. Change Your Habits Change Your Life nearly sold as many books in one year, as Rich Habits had sold in five years.

My new perception drove me to do things the old Tom Corley would have never done; things completely outside my comfort zone.

And therein lies the secret to success – when you change your self-image, that change causes you to do things you would not otherwise have done.

Changing how you perceive yourself is like being born all over again.

How do you perceive yourself?

Is that perception constructive or destructive?

Is it helping you move forward and grow, or is it an anchor, holding you back?

If you want to be something you are not, you need to change how you perceive yourself – you need a clear vision of who you want to be.

For me, it was JC Jobs, a future version of Tom Corley.

If you are struggling in life, at the heart of that struggle is how you perceive yourself. A destructive perception will keep you stuck in a sort of Perception Quagmire. Don’t let that happen.

We are all much more than we ever imagined ourselves to be.

You just need to change your self-image. Soon, everything about your life will begin to align with your new self-image.