You Don’t Get the Title Until You Earn It

Back in the early days, when I was still figuring things out from a spare bedroom, my mom called me something unexpected:

“You’re a dream maker.”

At the time, I didn’t feel like it.

No big wins. No media features. No proof yet that this little laptop hustle would ever become a real business.

But my mom? She saw something.

And sometimes… that’s all it takes.

Later, a friend called me “The Deal Maker.”
Again, not because I had the track record, but because I was starting to move differently.
Asking better questions. Thinking bigger. Hunting down opportunity while others waited around for it to show up.

Neither title came from me.
But both became real because I showed up, even when the bank account was dry, the systems were messy, and the doubt was louder than the wins.

Titles Don’t Make You. The Work Does.

Most people wait until they’ve “arrived” to start claiming who they are.

That’s backward thinking.

The people who win live into the identity before the world believes it.

They take the small steps, even when it’s ugly.
They speak the future out loud, and then they do the work to back it up.
They build the proof brick by brick, day by day.

You want to become a deal maker? Start making deals, even the small ones.
You want to be a dream maker? Start helping people, even when it’s not profitable yet.

Because when the title finally fits… it’ll be because you earned it.

3 Tactical Takeaways to Apply Right Now:

1. Name the Identity You’re Building Into

Write it down. Say it out loud. Own it, even before it feels “safe” to do so.

Example:
“I’m a builder of businesses that outlast me.”
“I’m a strategic operator who creates real outcomes.”
“I’m the one people trust to make things happen.”

You don’t need to post it. But you do need to believe it.

2. Look for the People Who Already See It

We all need a “first believer.”
Maybe it’s your mom. Maybe it’s a mentor. Maybe it’s YOU.

But find someone, and if you can’t, be that someone for yourself and for others.

Because real confidence starts before results show up.

3. Earn the Title With Your Calendar

You don’t become who you say you are with one big move.

You become it by scheduling it.

If you say you’re a closer?
Put “follow-up calls” on your calendar every morning.

If you say you’re a creator?
Block off 60 minutes to publish, build, or record.

The world doesn’t give you titles.
It watches what you do and then it confirms what you’ve proven true.

Final Thought:

The titles that matter aren’t the ones you put on LinkedIn.
They’re the ones you live into by doing the hard, unsexy, consistent work that nobody sees at first.

Someone out there is watching you right now.

Your kid.
Your partner.
A young entrepreneur.
Maybe even your future self.

Be the proof they need to believe in what’s possible.

You got this.
Let’s keep building.