Father.
Entrepreneur.
Adviser.
The one who sorts things out.
The one who stays calm.
The one who works hardest.
Some of these roles have helped me a great deal.
They can give you direction when you are not quite sure what to do next. If I ask myself what kind of father or leader I want to be, the decision sometimes becomes clearer.
But I have also started thinking about the other side.
What happens when the role becomes too powerful?
If I am always “the one who sorts things out”, does that make it harder to let others take responsibility?
If I am “the entrepreneur”, do I always have to be starting something?
If I am “the strong one”, do I allow myself to ask for help?
Perhaps roles are useful tools.
But perhaps we need to ask regularly whether we are still using the role or whether the role has started using us.