Widen the Lens -
Change the Pattern
Most people try to change their behaviour. I work at the level where those behaviours were formed - by reorganising your self-concept, widening the lens on your experience, and changing how it's been categorised. Everything else follows...
BECOME AN EXCEPTIONAL BUSINESS LEADER
Don’t settle for good. Redefine your leadership and transform business challenges into opportunities for growth, resilience, and meaningful work.
HOW SELF-CONCEPT ACTUALLY WORKS
WHAT IS SELP-CONCEPT?
Your self-concept is the lens through which you experience everything — your work, relationships, health, and sense of meaning. It quietly shapes what you notice, how you interpret events, and what feels possible.
Most people try to change their circumstances while leaving this lens untouched. But when you reorganise how you see yourself, behaviour begins to change naturally.
My work draws on a precise methodology developed by psychologist Steve Andreas. It focuses on two fundamental processes: scope — what you attend to and notice, and category — how you organise what you notice. When these shift, everything else tends to follow.
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 →]
READY FOR CHANGE LIKE THIS ?
I work with a small number of people who are ready for identity-level change.
Not tips or hacks, but a deeper reorganisation of how they see themselves — and the patterns that follow from that.
This is careful, structural work. It suits people who are curious about how their patterns are formed, capable of reflecting honestly, and willing to stay with the process long enough for it to settle.
If you’ve noticed the same themes repeating in your life — and have a sense there’s a deeper structure underneath — we can talk and see whether this work is a good fit.
Link: Book a clarity call →
HARD WORK ALONE WON’T BREAK YOUR 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 into what you should be doing differently.
But if the lens through which you see yourself stays the same, the pattern stays the same. 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 you see yourself differently, behaviour shifts 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.
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, even worked with coaches. They understand the ideas. They know what should help. But understanding isn’t the same as seeing.
The reason patterns persist isn’t a lack of insight or willpower. It’s that we all attend to a narrow slice of our experience — we only notice what confirms what we already believe about ourselves, and filtering out the rest. That filtering happens automatically. Which means you can’t see what you’re not seeing. This is why even elite athletes don’t coach themselves. Not because they lack discipline or intelligence, but because performance is hindered by blind spots — and blind spots, by definition, can’t be corrected from the inside.
Self-concept work is the same.
You need someone outside your current lens — someone who can help you widen the scope, notice the counter-evidence you’ve been overlooking, and reorganise how you understand yourself based on all of your experience, not just the familiar parts.
That’s what I do. Not by adding more information, but by helping you see what you’ve been filtering out — and letting the structure reorganise from there.
If you’re ready to work at the identity level, rather than endlessly adjusting behaviour, we can talk and see whether this work is the right fit.
MEET IAN TRAYNAR, YOUR COACH AND GUIDE
I’m a self-concept coach trained in the methodology developed by Steve Andreas.
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. And believe me, if we get to work together, you'll hear tonnes of examples!
Steve’s approach didn’t give me better strategies; it reorganised how I understood myself. That shift proved durable — and compelling enough that I chose to spend the following years learning how to guide others through the same process.
Alongside this work, I’m also a photographer. That’s where the lens metaphor comes from. A camera lens determines what you see and what gets recorded — not because reality changes, but because perception does.
Your self-concept works in much the same way: it’s the structure through which experience is interpreted and stored.
Change the lens, and the whole picture changes.
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.
