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Mindset

The identity iceberg

You can see someone's behaviour. What drives it sits under the water.

A LevelMindsets
Also called: behaviour beliefs identity, logical levels, why change fails

A widely-used coaching model; no single originator.

In one paragraph

Behaviour is the visible tip. Beneath it sit skills, then beliefs, then identity — and trying to change the tip without touching what is below it rarely holds.

Above the waterline: behaviour and results — what people do and what it produces. This is all anyone can observe, and it is what management usually tries to change directly.

Below: capability (what someone can actually do), beliefs and values (what they think is true and what matters), and at the bottom identity (who they think they are).

Why instructions do not stick

Telling someone to behave differently addresses the tip. If the behaviour is produced by a belief — that selling is pushy, that asking for money is rude, that they are 'not a numbers person' — the instruction is fighting the whole iceberg and loses.

The practical version: change is easier from the bottom up. Someone who comes to see themselves as the sort of person who follows up does not need reminding to follow up.

How to actually use it

  • When a behaviour will not change despite everyone agreeing it should, look one level down. The belief underneath is usually stated out loud if you ask.
  • For yourself: the phrase 'I'm just not very good at' is an identity statement wearing the clothes of a fact.

Where it breaks down

  • It is a coaching metaphor rather than a psychological model, and it invites amateur analysis of colleagues, which is best avoided.
  • Some behaviour is caused by workload, process or incentives, not by belief — check the system before you go looking underneath the person.