Identity Check: How Athletic Identity Shapes Our Response to Setbacks

It’s something we can take for granted — our personal identity and how it shapes our view of self, our perceptions, and our challenges. Often times due to intense personal schedules for athletes, it’s challenging to find time for personal reflection on “lofty” things such as how we find our self-worth and where we find meaning. But what if those “lofty” things were impacting us in significant ways? What if taking the time to think through our identity could change everything? 

It’s important to take a step back and acknowledge that there’s a “shadow side” to the high-performance mentality so often employed by dedicated athletes. Our pursuit of excellence can sometimes come at the cost of our own emotional health without us even realizing it. 

Our guest today, former professional athlete, researcher, and licensed therapist, Dr. Ben Houltberg, specializes in the topic of identity with athletes. In this conversation, he discusses:

• How performance-based identity impacts our response to setbacks and roadblocks
• The “markers” of an unhealthy athletic identity
• The difference between a high-performance mentality and a performance-based identity 
• How we can go about dismantling some of the unhealthy habits we’ve formed that feed into a performance-based identity 
• Practical advice for how to cultivate a healthy identity
• The power of pain being transformed into purpose
• Perspective for athletes struggling with feelings of disappointment and let-down from an unfulfilling sports season or the loss of their sports season altogether due to COVID-impact or injury, etc. 
• And more!

➡️ A thought-provoking interview about how understanding who we are and what we value connects us with something bigger than ourselves and leads us to the greatest fulfillment in our sport participation and in life beyond sports as well.