Laurence Ackerman - The Identity Code: The 8 Essential Questions for Finding Your Purpose and Place in the World

Contents

THE IDENTITY CODE

THE 8 ESSENTIAL QUESTIONS FOR FINDING YOUR PURPOSE AND PLACE IN THE WORLD

LARRY ACKERMAN

Random House

New York

For Max

Courage, always.

Acknowledgments

To everyone who contributed to the creation of The Identity Code, thank you for inspired thoughts, for believing in the wisdom of identity, and, in many cases, for personifying the power that identity-based living contains. If there are any heroes in my book, they are the people whose stories I relate throughout the textthank you for being who you are and for being part of my life.

Special acknowledgment goes to a number of individuals whose heartfelt interest in my workand, sometimes, just an unbiased eyemoved me forward when I needed encouragement.

Thanks to Jim Levine, my agent, who saw the potential in my proposal, understood my drive to popularize the concept of identity, and stayed the course, over nearly two years, to ensure that this book found a home with the right publisher; to Caroline Sutton, my editor, whose eyes, as much as her words, first told me how much she believed in the power of identity, and who has helped bring out the vitality this book contains; to Gerry Sindell, my dear friend and adviser, whose fiery passion for identity matches my own and whose insight and wisdom kept me going when I needed a voice I could trust without reservation.

Finally, I want to offer special thanks to Esra Sertoglu, Thomas Ordahl, Jim Lowell, and Peter Swerdloff, colleagues from Siegel & Gale. Their personal interest in identity as a framework for living, and their many diverse contributions to this book, have come to mean a great deal to me over the course of the years weve worked together.

Epilogue: The Identity Circle

A s you have seen, each part of this book is introduced with a small circle. This circle, which is illustrated fully on page 2, brings together all aspects of the identity code into one integrated figure. This circle, like many, has a long and rich history.

Circles have been invoked for centuries, and by many civilizations, to depict wholeness, eternity, and renewal. In art, the circle, sometimes called a mandala, is used in many religious traditions. Some Christian nuns in the twelfth century created many beautiful mandalas to express their beliefs. In the Americas, Native Americans created medicine wheels, while the circular Aztec calendar was both a time-keeping device and a religious expression of ancient Aztecs.

On our planet, living things are made of cells, and each cell has a nucleus. All are circles with centers. Consider a circle with a center the basic structure of creation. It is mirrored in the world, from atoms to the tiniest flowers and spider webs to giant structures, such as our solar system and, within it, the earth.

The circle is more than an image to be seen with our eyes. It is viewed by some cultures to be an actual moment in timedynamic and fluid, with meaning and purpose. It can be used as a vehicle for exploring not just art and science but life itself.

The Laws of Identity form their own circle, which comes alive with possibilities. You can enter the circle at any point, diving in and coming out, only to reenter it at another place, or another time. At first, the middle of the identity circle appears empty, as though it has no unifying center. Nothing could be further from the truth. You are in the middle. You give the identity circle its meaning. Look deep enough and you will find yourself at its core.

Annotated Bibliography

The literature dedicated to the subject of human identity is vast. There are many books that take aim at identity from different angles, directly and indirectly, spiritually and practically. Here is a list of books I believe offer interesting and useful perspectives on the topic, complementing The Identity Code.

Identity Is Destiny, Laurence D. Ackerman (Berrett-Koehler, 2000)

This is my first book. In it I present the Laws of Identity for the first time and, through the use of case studies and personal narrative, show how people and organizations are governed equally by them.

What Should I Do with My Life?, Po Bronson (Random House, 2002)

What Should I Do with My Life? is written for anyone contemplating major life changes. It is built around dozens of stories about everyday people who have confronted this central question head-on and who have survived the challenges that seeking answers bring.

Identity and the Life Cycle, Erik Erikson, (W. W. Norton, 1980)

In this groundbreaking book, Erikson describes identity as the blending of two forces: an individuals ties with the particular values of his or her family and heritage, and the traits that simply make each of us special. From his studies, Erikson maps how people grow by developing their identities, beginning in infancy and early childhood, all the way through to adulthood and mature age.

Wisdom of the Millennium, Helen Exley (Exley Publications, 1999)

This book addresses identity through the lens of many beautiful quotations. It contains some of the wisest words ever written about human values, such as kindness, hope, courage, and perseverancethe forces of life your identity yields.

The Prophet, Kahlil Gibran (Knopf, 1923)

The Prophet tells the story of a mysterious man who, at the moment of his departure on a journey, wishes to offer people in his village gifts, but he possesses nothing. The people gather round, and each asks a question of the heart. The mans wisdom becomes his gift. The prophets wisdom touches many of the themes that flow from an identity-based life.

The Souls Code, James Hillman (Warner Books, 1996)

In this book, Hillman presents a vision of our selves that isnt defined by family relationships or other influences outside of us. He argues that what he terms character is fate and goes on to show how the soul, if given the opportunity, can assert itself at an early age. Hillman presents the view that the essence of our individuality is within us from birth, shaping what we do as much as it is shaped by what we do.

Working Identity, Herminia Ibarra (Harvard Business School Press, 2003)

Ibarras book challenges the traditional belief that a meticulous assessment of ones skills and interests will automatically lead one to discover the right job. Defining the arc of the future is a never-ending process of putting ourselves through a set of steps that creates and reveals our possible selves. Professor Ibarra shares the stories of twenty-three people who navigated successful career changes.

Self Matters, Phillip C. McGraw, Ph.D. (Simon & Schuster, 2001)

Self Matters challenges people to find their authentic selfthe person you once were before life took its toll. The book describes this self as a person at his or her greatest, most fulfilled, most real momentthe person one has always wanted to be, but was too distracted, busy, or scared to become.

The Road Less Traveled, M. Scott Peck (Simon & Schuster, 1997)

The authors crucial premisethat life is hardis challenging for everyone. But through four principles of discipline, Peck argues, we can come to accept and transcend this fact. The road the author describes is by no means the easiest, but it is the only one worth taking.

The Book, Alan Watts (Vintage Books, 1966)

The Book