How do I become the person I want to be? (with Emily McDonald aka emonthebrain)

5 Aug 2026 · 1 min

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In this segment, the speaker (Basten Heutink) explains a practical self‑development technique often called the “act‑as‑if” approach. He argues that by mentally and physically behaving as if you already embody the desired identity, your brain and life circumstances begin to align with that vision. He illustrates the method with personal examples: deciding in the moment to become an author and, similarly, adopting the label of “podcaster” when starting a podcast. He stresses the importance of consciously choosing the labels you apply to yourself, because those labels shape your self‑concept and actions. The core message is that intentional self‑labeling and embodying the future self can unlock the power to become the person you want to be.

Chapters

Act like you already have it, like you already are it. When you fall asleep at night, you lay down, you close your eyes, you slow your breath, and you pretend like you're asleep until you fall asleep, and your brain makes it so. And life works that way as well. You have to act like it and move like it. So how do I apply that? From my book example, I really just decided I'm an author. Like, from this moment forward, I'm an author. And I think a lot of times we don't realize the power that we have to choose those sorts of things. This is another reason why I tell people to be so careful about the labels that they use to identify themselves and the labels that they put on themselves. And applying that practically, a lot of times it really just looks like choosing to identify as that version of you. Um, like if I'm trying to start a podcast, I am a podcaster.