Applause feels good — until it becomes the role you live for. Discover why image can’t hold you together, how Bono refused the box of fame, and how ILR restores identity beyond visibility.

Applause, recognition, visibility — they can feel like fuel. But when your sense of self is tied to what others see, it’s only a matter of time before you feel hollow inside.

In today’s episode of The Recalibration, Julie Holly explores the hidden cost of living for image and public identity. Roles aren’t just professional; sometimes it’s the public role — the admired one, the accomplished one, the reliable one — that distorts who you are.

Drawing on psychology, neuroscience, and Bono’s story of refusing to be boxed in by fame, Julie shows why image is fragile and why identity is the only foundation that endures.

You’ll discover:

• Why applause lights up your nervous system like a dopamine hit — but never lasts
  
  
• How the pull to live for perception shows up in workplaces, communities, and families — not just on global stages
  
  
• Why therapy helps you process and coaching helps you manage, but ILR frees you at the root
  
  
• How Bono and U2 risked their following by evolving their music, choosing authenticity over approval
  
  
• A practical test to know if you’ve confused image with identity
  
  

Today’s Micro Recalibration:
Ask yourself: What role am I playing for others that’s hiding my true self? Write it down. Call it what it is. Then ask: who am I apart from this role?

If you’ve ever felt the weight of performing for perception — in your workplace, in your family, or in your circle of influence — this episode will help you recalibrate. Visibility doesn’t have to consume you. With ILR, it can become an overflow of identity, not the mask you hide behind.

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