The Version of You That Wins

Introduction

Success does not create the best version of you. The best version of you creates success.

Every person wants to perform at their highest level. Make better decisions. Show up more powerfully. Achieve goals that actually matter. And yet, many performance challenges do not come from lack of skill, effort, or opportunity.

They come from performing as who you have been instead of who you are becoming.

The leader waiting for a promotion before acting like a leader. The entrepreneur waiting for revenue before thinking like a CEO. The professional waiting for confidence before showing up confidently.

They are capable. They are ready. They are just performing from the wrong identity.

The people who win do not wait for results to believe in themselves. They decide who they are becoming and perform from that version of themselves today.

Why Most People Perform Below Their Potential

Potential feels accessible when conditions are right. It stays locked when identity does not shift.

Most people underperform because:

They perform from their current identity instead of their future one
They wait for external validation before internal belief arrives
They let past results define future capability
They act as who they have been instead of who they are becoming
They confuse where they are with who they are

In these moments, performance does not need more skill. It needs an identity shift.

When you perform from a limited identity, even strong capability produces limited results.

The version of you that wins is not waiting for permission. It is waiting for a decision.

The Real Reason People Stay Stuck

Staying stuck is rarely about capability. It is about identity.

Most people stay in place because they think:

“I will believe in myself when I get the results"
“I will act like a leader when I have the title"
“I will show up confidently when I feel ready"
“I will invest in myself when I can afford it"

Under pressure, these beliefs keep capable people performing below their actual level.

High performers do not wait for results to validate their identity. They build the identity that produces the results.

The Difference Between Current Identity and Winning Identity

Most people perform from who they have been. Winners perform from who they are becoming.

Current identity sounds like:

“I am someone who struggles with confidence"
“I have never been great at making decisions"
“People like me do not usually achieve things like that"
“I need more experience before I can lead at that level"

Winning identity sounds like:

“I am someone who acts despite discomfort"
“I make decisions and adjust as I go"
“I am becoming the kind of person who achieves this"
“I lead from where I am while growing into where I am going"

The difference is not arrogance. It is decision.

You do not need to have arrived to perform like someone who will.

What Performing From Winning Identity Actually Looks Like

Identity is not what you say about yourself. It is how you show up every day.

People performing from winning identity:

Make decisions the best version of themselves would make
Have conversations the person they are becoming would not avoid
Invest time and energy aligned with future goals, not just current comfort
Hold standards that match who they are growing into
Act with the confidence of someone who has already decided to win

This is not about pretending. It is about deciding.

Every action either reinforces your current identity or builds your winning one.

Why High Performers Make the Identity Shift First

Elite performers in every field understand one thing most people miss.

Behavior follows identity.

When you decide who you are becoming:

Decisions align with that identity automatically
Discipline becomes easier because it matches who you are
Opportunities become visible that were previously invisible
Confidence builds because actions reinforce the new identity
Results follow because behavior has already changed

Most people try to change behavior without changing identity. That is why it never sticks.

Change the identity first. Behavior follows.

The One Question That Changes Everything

High performers use one question to bridge current self and winning self.

“What would the best version of me do right now?"

Not the most comfortable version. Not the most cautious version. The best version.

When facing a difficult decision: What would the best version of me decide?
When avoiding a hard conversation: What would the best version of me say?
When tempted to shrink in a room: How would the best version of me show up?
When doubting capability: What would the best version of me believe right now?

This question does not eliminate doubt. It shifts the decision-maker.

The Framework for Becoming the Version That Wins

Identity is not changed through motivation alone. It is built through intentional practice.

Step 1: Define the Winning Version Clearly

You cannot perform as a version of yourself you have not defined.

Answer specifically:

How does the best version of me make decisions?
How does the best version of me handle pressure and setbacks?
How does the best version of me show up in rooms that matter?
What standards does the best version of me hold without compromise?
What does the best version of me do that the current version avoids?

Clarity on who you are becoming creates a target to perform toward.

Step 2: Make One Identity-Based Decision Daily

Winning identity is built through daily decisions, not dramatic moments.

Ask every day:

What is one decision I can make today as the best version of me?
What conversation can I have today that aligns with who I am becoming?
What action can I take today that the current version would avoid but the winning version would not?

Small daily decisions compound into unshakable identity over time.

Step 3: Audit What Reinforces Your Current Identity

Your environment constantly reinforces who you are or who you are becoming.

Audit honestly:

What habits keep you performing as the current version?
What relationships reinforce limitations instead of growth?
What content and inputs keep you stuck in current identity?
What environments shrink you instead of expanding you?

Remove or reduce what anchors you to a version of yourself you are growing beyond.

Step 4: Act Before You Feel Ready

The winning version of you does not wait for certainty. It acts with intention.

Stop waiting for:

Perfect conditions to start
Complete confidence to speak
Full certainty to decide
External validation to believe

The winning version acts first. The feeling of readiness follows action, not the other way around.

Step 5: Track Identity Evidence, Not Just Results

Results take time. Identity shifts are visible immediately.

Track daily:

Where did I act as the best version of me today?
What decision did I make that aligned with who I am becoming?
Where did I show up differently than the previous version would have?

Identity evidence builds the belief that sustains performance before results arrive.

The Questions That Reveal Your Identity Gap

When assessing where you are performing from, ask:

Question 1: Am I making decisions based on who I have been or who I am becoming?

This reveals whether current identity or winning identity is driving behavior.

Question 2: Where am I waiting for results before I believe in myself?

This identifies the exact area where the identity shift needs to happen first.

Question 3: What would the best version of me do today that I am currently avoiding?

This is where the work begins.

These questions close the gap between where you are and who you are becoming.

What Changes When You Perform From Winning Identity

When the identity shift happens, everything else follows.

You see:

Decisions made with clarity instead of hesitation
Conversations had with directness instead of avoidance
Opportunities pursued instead of rationalized away
Standards held instead of compromised for comfort
Results that reflect capability instead of limitation

This is not motivation. This is identity in action.

Why the Winning Version Is Already Inside You

The best version of you is not someone you need to become from scratch.

It is the version that:

Already knows what the right decision is
Already understands what standards to hold
Already recognizes what conversations need to happen
Already sees what opportunities are available

The gap is not capability. It is permission.

Give yourself permission to perform as that version today.

What This Looks Like in Practice

The winning version of you does not wait for Monday to start fresh.

It starts now.

It sends the email today.
It makes the decision this week.
It has the conversation before it gets harder.
It shows up in the room as who it is becoming, not who it has been.

Every moment is a choice between current identity and winning identity.

Choose intentionally.

The Bottom Line

Pressure is not decreasing. Expectations are not lowering. The gap between average and excellent continues to widen.

When you commit to performing as the best version of yourself:

You stop waiting for results to believe in your capability
You make decisions that align with who you are becoming
You show up in rooms as the leader you are growing into
You build identity that produces results instead of waiting for results to build identity

For leaders, high performers, and anyone committed to achieving what they are actually capable of, the identity shift is not optional. It is where everything begins.

At conferences and corporate events, keynote speaker Juan Bendana helps individuals and teams close the gap between current performance and winning potential. As a leadership speaker, corporate speaker, and motivational speaker trusted by Fortune 100 companies, Juan delivers high-energy presentations that transform how audiences think about identity, confidence, and peak performance. His work with executives, Olympians, and high-performing teams has established him as one of the most sought-after corporate speakers for organizations developing leaders who perform at their highest level.

Success does not create the best version of you.

Deciding to become that version creates the success.