Alter ego 🌟

Character building | Oprah Winfrey | Become

Last week, we talked about the 4 chemicals that fuel your happiness. This week, we will talk about your other self: your alter ego.

When I think of chemicals, I think of the magical TV show from 10 years ago: Breaking Bad. It was a phenomenal, slick show (average of 9.4/10 on IMBD over 5 seasons)! SPOILER ALERT: in this series a chemistry teacher transforms himself into a meth drug kingpin as he needs money for his treatment and to leave his family after he dies. Simple plot.

The interesting lens for us today is how Walter White, a clumsy and unsure chemistry teacher, morphs into his alter ego, Heisenberg, a ruthless and sharp “business owner”.

As the series develops, this character becomes a bit of a legend, a myth, a monster 10 meters high that instils fear through his name alone. A far cry from Walter White at the beginning of the show. The way he dresses, talks, behaves, thinks, the way he simply is, is different. He built that character.

We could refer to many other examples but think of Batman, from Bruce Wayne to Batman. In contrast, another DC legend, Superman, was born a superhero! His alter ego is Clark Kent, less interesting to discuss here, but Superman still created one. 

To bring it from fictional characters to real-life examples, in a previous letter I talked about artists like Daft Punk and Banksy who have mastered this art of their alter ego. It frees them from the pressure and helps them to get in the zone when they get the mask on.

Even closer to us, in my industry, there is a CEO who is larger than life, as we say, and who has a reputation that precedes himself. He has become a bit of a myth and last week as I was sipping a glass of wine with my old boss who knows him quite well, he laughed saying, “People don’t know him and make things up.” That CEO has created a character that has helped him tremendously in his career.

In our day-to-day lives, we might call that “looking the part”, but you need to become what you want to create so that your thoughts and actions converge. As they align in you, so you become your alter ego.

Who is your alter ego? The master of sales, the mindful boss, the sweet lover, the unstoppable beast, the groovy dancer, the flashlight of the ice ring …

How would your character speak, think, dress? What clothes could they wear? Who do they look to?

QUESTION…

To go where you want to be, to get what you want to have, to achieve what you set yourself to do, who do you need to become?