This is why I advocate starting with incredibly small actions (small votes still count!) and building consistency. Use the 2-Minute Rule to get started. Follow the Seinfeld Strategy to maintain consistency. Each action becomes a small vote that tells your mind, "Hey, I believe this about myself." And at some point, you actually will believe it.

In one of my very first articles, I discussed a concept called identity-based habits .

The basic idea is that the beliefs you have about yourself can drive your long-term behavior. Maybe you can trick yourself into going to the gym...