Identity leadership is very important to me. It’s a topic that is relevant to the 7.7 billion people living today. Identity leadership is self-leadership, and it is based on the philosophy that if you can’t lead yourself, you can’t lead anyone else.

Leadership, or lack thereof, determines the success or failure of an organization. Identity, the true understanding of self, can serve as a leader’s greatest asset. Enduringly successful people know who they are, are clear about what matters to them, and create value for themselves and others.

Identity leadership holds you responsible for your own development. Identity leaders never stop growing or developing. They are lifelong students and never stop taking in new information.

My life dramatically changed for the better when I began centering all that I do around my talents, strengths, and passions. As I came to understand my identity and my purpose in life, that enabled me to realize the value of education, information, and knowledge. I began to make information relevant to my personal and professional development, and that allowed me to define my existence and take control of my life. The old system of memorizing information to take a test and then forgetting the information makes it difficult to grow beyond our circumstances.

Understanding how to apply knowledge and learning to self-actualize your potential is what identity leadership is all about. The Nine-Step Success Process, which I present in this book, works. It will help you reverse the old and ineffective learning process and make everything relevant to who you are.

We all have twenty-four hours in a day. The question is, what do we do with those twenty-four hours to empower ourselves? What are we doing to develop our gifts, our strengths, our talents?

My goal with this book is to improve your performance at every level, enhance your lifelong learning capacity, and change your mindset from that of a follower to a leader—first leading yourself, then others. I’ve dedicated my life to this work of teaching people throughout the world how to self-actualize their potential as human beings. I am thankful and blessed to have discovered for myself who I am and what my purpose is, what my mission in life is, and to be able to share that with as many people as I possibly can.

In my book, Identity Leadership, I introduce the reader to what I describe as a Nine Step Plan for Success. It is actually a process that anyone can embrace and adhere to. Below is a brief overview of the Nine Step Process:

Nine Step Plan for Success Process

1. Check Your I.D. Before deciding what to do in life, you must first understand who you are.
2. Create Your Vision. Your vision is your life’s destination.
3. Develop Your Travel Plan. You must create your plan of action.
4. Master The Rules of the Road.  Guidelines keep you on track.
5. Step into the Outer Limits. To grow you have to leave your comfort zone.
6. Pilot the Seasons of Change. If you keep doing what you have always done, you will keep getting the same results.
7. Build Your Dream Team. No one makes it alone. Learn to build supportive relationships.
8. Win by a Decision. Who you are in the world is largely a result of the decisions you have made.
9. Commit to Your Vision. When you consistently devote time and energy to the pursuit of your goals and vision, you discover that commitment is a nonnegotiable trait that, when renewed daily, propels you.

If you want your life to get better, then take control of it. It’s up to you and no one else. Don’t wait for others to define who you are or what your potential is. That, my friend, is a lifelong journey for you to undertake.

Note: You can expect to see a series of articles by Stedman Graham on the AFE platforms to support your thoughts and plans to succeed in your micro entrepreneurial journey.