Widen the Lens -
Change the View
Most people try to change their behaviour. I work at the level where experience is organised – by reorganising how your self-concept categorises experience and how broadly these categories are applied. When the structure changes, behaviour follows...
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HOW SELF-CONCEPT ACTUALLY WORKS
WHAT IS SELP-CONCEPT?
Your self-concept is not a belief about yourself — it’s the system through which you interpret experience.
It shapes what you notice, what counts as evidence, how far conclusions are applied, and what feels possible or impossible over time.
Most people try to change behaviour or circumstances while leaving this system untouched. But when the underlying organisation changes — how experience is categorised and how broadly those categories are applied — behaviour reorganises naturally.
My work draws on a precise methodology developed by psychologist Steve Andreas. It focuses on two fundamental organising principles: category (how experience is sorted) and scope (how widely those conclusions are applied).
When these are recalibrated, patterns that once felt personal or stubborn often dissolve on their own.
Link: [Learn more about the work →]
STORIES OF TRANSFORMATION
Change often happens in small, precise moments:
- when someone widens their scope from this quarter to this decade — and the urgency softens
- when “I failed” quietly becomes “I learned.”
- when they realise they’ve been drawing conclusions from a narrow slice of evidence, and there’s far more available to them than they thought.
These are stories of people who reorganised their self-concept — and found that patterns which once felt stubborn and personal, simply dissolved.
Link: [Read the stories →]
IS THIS A GOOD FIT FOR YOU?
I work with a small number of people who are interested in identity-level change — not through motivation, advice, or techniques, but by understanding the deeper structure that organises their patterns.
This work tends to suit people who have already tried effort-based change, gained insight, and still notice the same themes repeating. People who suspect that the issue isn’t willpower, but how experience has been organised.
It’s careful, structural work. It requires curiosity, honesty, and a willingness to observe your own patterns without rushing to fix them.
If that resonates, we can have a simple exploratory conversation and see whether this approach makes sense for you.
Link: Book a clarity call →
EFFORT ALONE WON’T SHIFT A STRUCTURAL PLATEAU…
You’ve tried working harder.
Longer hours. More discipline. Better systems.
And yet the same patterns keep returning — stress that won’t settle; people-pleasing you can’t seem to stop; procrastination that reappears just when you thought you’d moved past it. The problem isn’t a lack of effort. It’s that you’ve been working at the wrong level.
Most approaches to change — whether coaching, therapy, or self-help — focus on adding more content; more strategies; more tools; more insight. But adding information doesn't change the system that's organising your behaviour.
If the lens through which you see yourself stays the same, the system keeps producing the same pattern. Sustainable change doesn’t come from better habits or trying harder. It comes from changing the reference point you're using to understand yourself.
When the underlying structure shifts, behaviour reorganises naturally – not through force or self-control, but through alignment.
This is identity-level work. And it’s what Self-Concept coaching is designed to do.
If this resonates, we can have a short exploratory conversation to look at the structure that's been holding the patter in place.
YOU DON’T HAVE TO FIGURE THIS OUT ALONE…
Most people who feel stuck have genuinely tried to work it out for themselves. They’ve read the books, listened to the podcasts, and often worked with coaches. They understand what should help. But understanding isn’t the same as seeing.
Patterns tend to persist not because of a lack of insight or willpower, but because every system filters its own experience. We naturally attend to a narrow slice of what’s happening, notice what confirms what we already believe about ourselves, and filter out the rest — automatically, and without realising it.
That’s why blind spots can’t be resolved from inside the same lens that created them. Not because of a lack of intelligence or discipline, but because no system can fully observe how it’s organising its own experience without a shift in perspective.
Self-concept work creates that shift — not by adding advice or insight, but by changing the conditions under which experience is noticed and organised.
My role isn’t to tell you what to think or do. It’s to help you see how your experience has been filtered, how conclusions have been formed, and how the underlying structure can reorganise when more of the system comes into view.
If you’re ready to work at the identity level — rather than endlessly adjusting behaviour — we can have a simple conversation and see whether this approach is a good fit.
Even elite athletes don't coach themselves. "Because no system can fully observe how it's organising it's own experience without a shift in perspective."
MEET IAN TRAYNAR, YOUR GUIDE & MENTOR
I work with people who want to understand what’s shaping their patterns — not just try to change them.
Before this work found me, I spent many years as a counsellor, stress management consultant, coach, and osteopath — always circling the same question: what actually creates lasting change?
I came to self-concept work through my own transformation over the past decade. What changed for me wasn’t behaviour first, or better strategies, but how I understood myself. When that shifted, the changes that followed proved durable.
That experience led me to train in the methodology developed by Steve Andreas, and to focus my work on mentoring others through the same kind of reorganisation — helping them see how conclusions are formed, how experience is filtered, and how patterns quietly maintain themselves.
Alongside this work, I’ve always loved being outdoors — mountains, rivers, and wild places — often with a camera in hand. I’m also drawn to maps and navigation: understanding where you are, and how perspective shapes what you see.
A camera lens doesn’t change the landscape — it changes what comes into focus. A map doesn’t tell you where to go — it helps you orient yourself.
Your self-concept works in much the same way. It shapes how experience is interpreted and remembered.
Change the orientation, and the picture can change with it.
CHOOSE YOUR PATH TO EXCELLENCE
ONE-TO-ONE COACHING
Work directly with me to reorganise your self-concept and create lasting change. We identify the unwanted quality that's driving your stuck pattern, widen the scope of what you're attending to, find counterexamples you've been filtering out, and reorganise your self-concept based on all the evidence.This is precise, collaborative work. Most clients experience significant shifts within 4-6 sessions.
Best for: People ready for identity-level transformation who want focused, personalised support.
GROUP COACHING
Join a small group of people working on similar patterns—stress, overwork, people-pleasing, procrastination. We apply Self-Concept methodology together, learn from each other's counterexamples, and support each other's reorganisation process.
Group coaching offers the power of shared experience with the precision of Self-Concept work.
Best for: People who want community, accountability, and a more accessible entry point to Self-Concept coaching.
Workshops & Speaking
I teach Self-Concept methodology to organisations, leadership teams, and faith communities. Workshops range from 90-minute introductions to full-day deep dives, covering how to reorganise self-concept, widen scope, and create identity-level change.
If you'd like to bring this work to your organisation or community, let's talk.
Best for: Organisations and communities ready to equip their people with transformational tools.
TESTIMONIAL
“Ian is truly amazing at what he does. When I first started my business coaching with Ian. I’d been through a very tough time financially and mentally and was ready to give up and sell the business that I have been running for 9 years.
After only a couple of sessions with Ian he helped me see things more clearly, when I just didn’t know what to do anymore. We figured out a plan to be able to move forward and keep my business and make it a success, but most importantly making sure I’m happy in life too.
I’m now excited for the future instead of dreading it. I can see the light at the end of the tunnel. Ian has given me confidence and helped me believe in myself. My mental health has improved dramatically with not having to worry anymore and knowing I CAN and WILL achieve my dreams.”
Laura Little
REORGANISE YOUR SELF CONCEPT
No more repeating the same patterns. When you widen the scope of what you notice and recategorise your experiences, your self-concept shifts—and behaviour changes naturally. Transform not just what you do, but who you see yourself as.
EXPERIENCE LASTING CHANGE
Say goodbye to the cycle of insight without transformation. When you reorganise your self-concept based on all the evidence—not just the narrow slice you've been attending to—change becomes natural and lasting, not forced.
WORK AT THE IDENTITY LEVEL
Forget the strategies and frameworks that add more content without changing structure. Self-Concept coaching reorganises how you see yourself—so the patterns that kept you stuck simply dissolve.
VOICES OF SUCCESS: WHAT OUR CLIENTS ARE SAYING
“I’m so happy, and relieved to have found Ian to help me through a very turbulent time in my life.
Having someone who truly hears and connects with you is so important when you feel there's nowhere to go and no hope.
His knowledge and life skills are so comforting and grounding when everything feels hopeless. Trust and comfort are so important at a difficult time, and I found all these qualities in Ian.”
Julia Scorey
“In just a few weeks of coaching with Ian I’ve experienced a timely recalibration of the way I think, feel and act.
Our sessions have brought focus and clarity in key areas of my life, resulting in renewed energy and purpose.
Ian brings profound insights, a wealth of experience, and comprehensive resources which will definitely shape my planning, productivity and results over the next 12 months.”
Alun Leppitt
Widen the Lens. Change the pattern. When you see yourself differently, everything changes.
