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Erik Erickson, a developmental psychologist from the sixties and seventies, famously coined the phrase, “identity crisis,” which has become such a part of our daily lexicon, it rarely carries with it anymore the depth of the psychological impact such confusion has on us.

But the truth is, an identity crisis hurts—and it is no less the case when the identity we’re in crisis over is our business. The American Heritage® Dictionary defines “identity crisis” as:

1. 1. A period of uncertainty and confusion in which a person’s sense of identity becomes insecure, typically due to a change in their expected aims or role in society, often producing anxiety.
4. 2.An analogous state of confusion occurring in a social structure, such as an institution or a corporation.

(…or any business.)

The American Heritage® Dictionary defines “identity” as:

1. 1. The set of characteristics by which a thing is definitively recognizable or known.
2. 2. The distinct personality of an individual regarded as a persisting entity; individuality.

Drawing from these definitions, then, when a business is undergoing an identity crisis, it experiences having “no definitively recognizable or known characteristics, and no persisting individuality.”

This is known either by direct results: very little business or the wrong clientele—or by a gnawing uneasiness.

Whether it is in the realm of the personal or business, an identity crisis is profoundly uncomfortable. We know something is off; we know we are not projecting our true selves, or the truest nature of the business. There is nothing definitively recognizable or known about the business; no individuality—and that feels bad.

I have professionals-turning-consultants, coaches, therapists, speakers and authors coming to me largely because they are having an identity crisis in business.

Even if they have not opened their doors yet, they have that troubled sense in the pit of their stomachs that their own ideas for their new business are too scattered, too vague, too boring. Not special enough.

Then there are those who’ve been in business a long while and have the same feeling of disorientation. I’ve changed! My business doesn’t reflect who I am today. I’m completely confused about what I want to do.

Identity crisis in business, especially for a sole proprietor, can be characterized by some or all of the following “symptoms”:

1. 1. A persistent, gnawing sense that how you are describing your work doesn’t connect with others.
2. 2. A persistent, gnawing sense that how you are portraying/presenting your work does not match your own values, vision, desires.
3. 3. Lack of sales/clients.
4. 4. Having no distinct imprint in your field. (I.E. looking like everyone else.)
5. 5. Feeling website shame because what’s “out there” does not match what’s “in here.”
6. 6. Hiding out from promoting your business because you don’t have a compelling way to define it, or the words that used to work no longer feel right.
7. 7. Obsessively and frequently changing your offers, programs, pricing, landing pages, believing they are the culprit.
8. 8. Spending a large percentage of your time watching free webinars and attending free events in search of the holy grail—that “one thing” that will settle the uneasiness in your gut.
9. 9. Feeling uncomfortable increasing your rates/fees (because you’re not really sure what your value is, because you’re not really sure what you do.)
10. 10. Having a slew of intellectual products, programs and free talks—and realizing they have no “set of characteristics that are definitively recognizable.” Lots of ‘things’ that have no single, unified message.

Which ones applies to you?

What causes an identity crisis in business? The following are key perpetrators; check off the ones that trigger a bell inside of you:

1. 1. A market that is too broad.
2. 2. A lack of deep, intimate knowledge of even a narrow market, so you don’t know their true pain, problems and urgent needs and so aren’t solving them.
3. 3. Portraying your business as having more than one specialty.
4. 4. Not trusting yourself or your own intuition. (Too many cooks in the kitchen.)
5. 5. Not having a single-focused response to, “Why would they hire me?”
6. 6. Not having a single, sling-shot solution that knocks them between the eyes with relevance and intrigue.
7. 7. Noodling too many ideas, keeping yourself stuck in place because you don’t know which one is right.
8. 8. Being out of touch with your deepest values, desires and visions.
9. 9 Spending your time searching for the holy grail, hoping the apple of innovation will fall from the tree—rather than carving out focused inner-reflection and brand strategy time.
10. 10. Having no articulation of the grounded and profound purpose for your business—what it is here to do that is bigger than you and your ego, and bigger than your market’s needs.

Which are the top two for you?’

So, what do you do when you’re feeling an identity crisis with your business? Since it’s an experience of great discomfort, we’ll speak about this in terms of “lessening the tension.” Until you have a brand identity that you truly love and that is highly marketable, you probably won’t experience elation and unshakable confidence—but you can feel much less anxiety by alleviating these three trouble-spots right away:

1. The first step to lightening up that tension is getting your target market right. This is a critical, delicate and challenging undertaking. Your market must be one with which you have great familiarity; with whom you have credibility; that has a truly urgent problem; has money to spend, and can be classified as a “group.”

The process of arriving at a market that meets all of these criteria can be hair-raising. I offer assistance with it in my free resource, The Perfect Buyer Workbook, or in my newer $12 resource, Inside the Secret Vault Swap Files, which offers 6 templates/worksheets I give only to clients and the first is on targeting your market.

2. Next, to greatly alleviate identity crisis tension, choose your area of specialty. I have all of my clients look at the 5 Areas of Life and choose the one that is the biggest issue for their market.The five areas of life are: Career, Physical Health, Romantic Relationship, Finances and Parenting/Family.

I always say that unless an individual is clinically depressed, humans don’t go around saying that every area in their life is a mess—so you shouldn’t be saying you help with every area of life. It’s human nature to complain about one or maybe two areas at a time. So, given who your market is (if you’re B to C, you should have them narrowed down to a decade range)—which of the 5 Areas of Life do they have their biggest complaints about?

You’ll need to sit down and really address this question—I doubt it will come just from reading this post—but do you see how identity crisis tension lessens enormously just from untangling these two issues?

3. For even greater relief, know what the complaint is that your market has in that area of life and how, specifically, you solve it. So, if your market is new moms ages 30-40, and your area of life is romantic relationships—you might know that their complaint is that they don’t feel sexy or desirous post-partum. Your solution might be to spark that desire through nutrition.

All of a sudden, with these 3 confusions off your plate, you have dramatically sharpened the outline of your identity. You’ll be able to articulate 1. whom you work with, 2. their worst problem in a specific area of life, and 3. your unique solution.

You may still sound and look like a lot of others out there at this point, but at least you have an identity!! That’s a lot more than you had before tackling these.

My strong position is that to rise above all the others who serve your same market, in the same area of life and who have a similar solution–you must be a “thought leader,” shaking up the status quo with an edgy, provocative message no one else is giving. To learn more about that, read about my branding program, The Powerhouse Method by clicking here, or its alternative, Made to Lead.

Nearly all of us experienced identity crises in middle school. It doesn’t take much to be transported back to how it felt to want the girl with the red hair but not feel we were special enough to get her. Or to be one of the last ones standing as the boys, one by one, picked their dance partners, or the captain picked his team in gym class. It hurts to feel that you have nothing definitively recognizable, no distinct personality—in life and in business.

But it doesn’t have to be that way. In fact, it cannot; you won’t survive! So, get working on getting those three areas of confusion sorted out–and reach out to me if you want a brand identity that reflects your true soul’s purpose, is highly marketable and shatters outdated paradigms!