If your mom asked you this question, would your answer be different than if I were to ask you? How about a child? Or a mentor?

This is a dense question that people toss around in introduction circles and expect you to answer it in 2 sentences, the true answer would take a lifetime.

You are the physical you, the cavity in your molar and the birthmark on your face both are a part of you. With the physical we are limited to change, we can only gain or lose so much weight. Your physical identity is who you are in the present moment, not who you were or are intending to be.

Cognitive identity, this has a lot to do with our experiential and mental capacity. The memories you made guide your choices and ultimately are a part of you. Unlike the physical version of yourself, your opinions, experiences and over all knowledge are very fluid. Any change that you intend to make starts with the cognitive part of your identity, and the fluidity of it makes it easy for us to adapt.

Emotional identity is where many people struggle. Unfortunately, I’ve noticed that many people depend on emotions to drive the their search for identity. Through the pursuit of feeling good, many people stray away from necessary plights. I don’t know the statistics, but we can all agree that depression is at an all time high. To identify yourself based solely on your emotions can cause catastrophic loops that prevent your growth. Although your emotions are valid, your identity is not a chemical reaction in your brain.

Your spiritual identity. This is an area many people don’t give enough attention to. For a theologian the question of ultimate concern is “does god exist”. If there is a god, it would be in your best interest to be connected to him. For millennia, spirituality was at the core of our identities and only recently have we deviated from that.

Your identity is at the core of your existence, whether or not you gave it some thought. Your identity is like a river that feeds the different estuaries of your being. Make sure to take a hold of your narrative, you are the master of your identity.