Written by Peter Freeth, Managing Director, Communications in Action

This month sees the launch of Big fish’s new look. I remember when they were little fishes, swimming against the stream. You may be surprised to learn that I’ve been writing this newsletter for almost 3 years now, so if you’ve been reading from the beginning, you’ll know that we’ve covered a lot of ground in that time.

So as Big fish are changing their image, I thought we would explore your image too. If you walk into Big fish’s offices, you’ll see the same people doing much the same things as they were a month ago, so what has changed? When people change their image, do they change on the inside too?

You’ve probably seen some of the many TV makeover programs where the fashion experts change the way someone looks and they proclaim that their life has changed a result. Does it really work that way?

Well, not exactly, but what happens is that when they see themselves in the mirror for the first time with their glamorous clothes, sexy haircut and gleaming teeth, something else changes first – their self image.

We are self aware – it’s one of the things that defines us as human. We have a self concept of ourselves which exists in our abstract map of the world, so that we can step outside of ourselves and make judgements. We can see how a situation looks from someone else’s point of view, we can mentally rehearse for sports and job interviews and of course we can be critical of ourselves.

As part of that self awareness, we each have a self image. It’s how we see ourselves, and it relates directly to how we feel about ourselves, our confidence etc. You will even hear people referring to their self image – listen out for phrases like, “I can’t see myself…” or “I can’t see how that would work for me…” For example, someone might want to move to a more responsible job, but would worry and say, “I can’t see myself getting a job like that” When you hear statements like this, they are quite literal.

The strange thing about a self image is that it’s always out of date (because few people ever think to update it) and it incorporates feedback from other people (which isn’t true) so we create self image which supports how we think other people feel about us. If you’re the kind of person who is self critical, you’ll typically pick someone who was critical of you and create a self image which fits the way they seemed to feel about you when they were being critical. Of course, it’s ridiculous! And it’s entirely made up to fit a time or a situation that you have long outgrown.

So you can become more aware of that self image, and you can give it a makeover. That’s right. Update the wardrobe, tidy the hair, get the posture nice and straight so that it looks like someone who is proud to be who they are. See yourself doing the kind of job you aspire to. See yourself with the kinds of people you really want to be with. Put a smile on your face. Remember, the self image is entirely constructed, so you can make it look however you want it to. No-one else can do it for you.

So what happens in those makeover programs is that the person, at the start, looks and dresses and stands to fit their self image, to make it ‘true’. If the TV producers showed them the changes bit by bit, there would be no effect, or at lease a very short term effect. Instead, by doing the big reveal at the end, the result is so far away from the person’s previous self image that it shocks them and the self image gets reset, and when the person’s self image changes, the way they feel about themselves changes. They see themselves and know that they could achieve anything.

So a change of image in itself isn’t in itself all that’s important. What’s important is that the self concept, the self image fits with the way you want to feel about yourself. Proud, successful, recognised, appreciated, whatever works for you.

Give yourself a makeover today and feel the difference!

Who is the author? 

Peter Freeth is the author and founder of Communications In Action. Peter will be writing informative and essential career support articles each and every month.

Communications In Action is a leading business coaching and training consultancy. Peter and other members of the consultancy deliver coaching, training and other professional development services to a wide range of businesses, in the UK and internationally.