Like other business owners and private medical groups, I tend to work more hours towards the end of the year.

December is an endless marathon trying to see more patients, add more procedure hours, and double book the office and endoscopy sessions on the clinic side. On the business side, we are creating more content and marketing our online programs.

Patients have met their deductibles; they need to check their screening colonoscopies off their list.

People are resolving to personal growth. They need our amazing coaching programs.

This year, my business partner and I intentionally decided to postpone the launch of our signature program to early next year to create some much-needed space for reflection, rest, and nourishment of our souls.

December is also an amazing time for practicing mindfulness, reflection, and slowing down.

As I slowed down in my business, the first things I noticed were the loud voices in my head.

“You are not great in social media.”

“I hate social media.”

“You will never have a breakthrough.”

“There are people more successful than you.”

“There are people smarter than you who have figured it all.”

“I suck.”

“You are not fast enough.”

“You don’t have time.”

“You don’t have the right connections.”

“Being a full-time doctor doesn’t leave you any time to be an entrepreneur.”

“You are an unrealistic dreamer.”

“You can’t implement your creative ideas.”

“There is something substantially wrong in the way you do things.”

“You’re a forever dabbler.”

“This entrepreneurial journey is just sucking life out of me.”

“You don’t need to take a break; what you need is to work harder.”

“Money is not easy.”

“You don’t deserve this.”

Horrifying, right? Listening to the voices in our head isn’t for the faint of heart. That’s one of the reasons why we tend to play busy rather than slow down.

Our inner voices come from our subconscious mind and create our identity. They become who we think we are and how we perceive ourselves. They are constantly running in the background, even when we are not aware of them. They are why we don’t go after things that make us happy and therefore don’t chase our dreams.

Our identity is shaped mainly in the first seven years of life, ingrained in our subconscious mind, and solidified later through our life experiences.

In simple words, our identity is the product of:

Parents, family, friends, teachers, mentors.

Culture and society.

Our own life experiences.

We don’t break through, cannot pivot, and get stuck in unpleasant circumstances due to perceptions we have around our identity and who we are. While the identity we accepted for ourselves and are functioning from has nothing to do with who we truly are.

This identity is merely based on other people’s narrative – a big lie.

The great news is that you can always rewire your subconscious mind and create a new identity for yourself – the one that’s aligned with who you want to be.

To help you rewire your subconscious and create a new identity, I first want to invite you to become aware of the voices in your head – your old identity. You may want to take some time, slow down, and write them all down. Then ask yourselves these two questions:

Are they true?

Whose voices are they? Are they truly yours?

If they are not yours, let’s make the decision right now to give them back to whoever they belong to. They most likely come from your parents, siblings, caretakers, teachers, friends, religion, culture, or society.

Shake it off, get up, and move forward with creating who you truly want to be – your new identity. I must warn you that the old identity doesn’t disappear overnight. It has been with you since your early childhood. It will show itself again and again.

The trick is to stay aware and repeat the above process each time you hear your old identity sneaking in.

That’s why mindfulness plays such a significant role in personal growth and success because change always starts with awareness.

This is how you say goodbye to the old identity that was created for you by others and create a new identity for yourself, where you are in charge.

And success always requires a new identity.

The new you in 2024 will be bold, badass, and unstoppable. Go claim it!

Parastoo Jangouk is dual board-certified in gastroenterology and internal medicine, managing partner at one of the largest gastroenterology groups in the nation, Austin Gastroenterology, chair, GIA Women in Leadership Committee, and co-founder, SOULpreneurMD. She also can be reached on Instagram and TikTok.