The concept of “alter ego” comes from the Latin phrase "the other I." It refers to an alternative personality or persona a person assumes in certain situations. It is a powerful tool used by many successful entrepreneurs, leaders, performers, and celebrities to reinvent themselves and fight obstacles that hold them back from being what they need to be. Kobe Bryant used Black Mamba, Martin Luther King Jr. used the concept of alter egos in which he would wear nonprescription glasses before writing his powerful speeches and our very own Gangadhar aka Shaktiman are some real and reel life examples.
Alter Ego is a powerful tool that can be used for self-improvement. Your alter ego can be an extension of yourself representing different facets of your personality that you may not usually exhibit (but want to). This can help you break free from limiting beliefs, overcome self-doubt, and experiment with new behaviours, attitudes, and ways of thinking to finally gain the confidence to incorporate the identity into your usual self.
Let's explore how we can use an alter ego to become our best selves, with real-life examples related to public speaking, language proficiency, relationship issues, and career growth.
But before we move on, let me first address the most common FAQ:
does alter ego mean being fake?
I always find this sad.
A version we want to be, a version that is free from self-doubts and the lack of self-confidence is rather the truest and freest version of us. Our limiting beliefs and conditioning make us doubt the possibility of being free from them. Perhaps, our current version isn't the most real version. An alter ego simply helps us find it.
Let's look at some real-life examples of how an alter ego can be used for self-improvement.
Public speaking or stage fright in performing arts is one of the most common fears, However, by creating an alter ego, you can become a confident, charismatic speaker.
In Beyoncé's words, "I have someone else that takes over when it's time for me to work and when I'm onstage, this alter-ego that I've created kind of protects me and who I really am." I Am...Sasha Fierce is one of her most popular albums and on its launch in 2008, she mentioned using Sasha FIerce as an alternative identity in her initial career and what she was able to achieve. Beyoncé said: “Sasha Fierce is the fun, more sensual, more aggressive, more outspoken side and the more glamorous side that comes out when I’m working and when I’m on the stage.”
Similarly, you can create your own alter ego to help you overcome your fear of public speaking/performing. By embodying this alter ego, you can become the confident speaker you've always wanted to be.
Relationships can be challenging, but by creating an alter ego, you can become a more confident, assertive partner. For example, let's say you struggle with setting boundaries in your relationships. You could create an alter ego who knows how to set boundaries, think how they will think, and do what they would do. You could use movie characters or people from your life as references. Then start doing small things like your alter ego would do until you own the behaviour permanently, and you may find that your relationships improve as a result.
An alter ego can also be used to help you achieve your career goals. Let's say you want to become a successful entrepreneur, but you struggle with self-doubt and fear of failure. You create an alter ego that is free of these limits. Is that entrepreneur someone who analyzes all the risks before getting into things, does he/she use more of heart or brain, is he/she an optimist or realist? You can think of hundreds of such questions to figure out the ideal personality and then try being more like them. You could use some props or cues that help you activate your alter ego. For example, wearing heels activates your confident side or a cap may bring out the sportiness in you.
The next question is, how to understand and use our alter egos?
There are several different models and approaches to understanding and using alter egos for self-improvement and personal growth. Here are a few examples:
1. The "Superhero Model":
In this model, an alter ego is used to tap into one's inner strengths and abilities, just like a superhero's powers. This model suggests that we all have untapped abilities and potential, and by creating an alter ego, we can access those abilities and use them to achieve our goals.
2. The "Role-playing Model":
This model emphasizes the use of alter egos as a form of role-playing, where individuals can try on different identities and experiment with new behaviours and attitudes. The goal is to develop new skills, gain confidence, and overcome personal challenges.
3. The "Reflection Model":
This model suggests that alter egos can be used as a tool for self-reflection and self-awareness. By creating an alter ego, an individual can gain insights into their own personality and behaviour, and use this understanding to make positive changes in their life.
4. The "Personality Model":
This model focuses on the different traits and characteristics of alter egos as they relate to our personality. In this model, an alter ego can be used as a tool to understand and develop one's personality, and to access certain traits that may be latent within us.
5. The "Therapeutic Model": This model suggests the use of alter egos in therapeutic settings as a way to explore different emotions and coping mechanisms for patients dealing with mental health issues, like anxiety or phobias. It also can be used in dealing with traumas, grief and other therapeutic processes.
Each model provides a different way of thinking about the purpose of an alter ego and the benefits it can provide, but ultimately the goal is to use the alter ego as a tool to achieve self-improvement and personal growth.
Creating an alter ego can be a fun and rewarding process, but it is important to be mindful of the purpose of your alter ego and to use it as a tool for self-improvement and growth, rather than as a way to escape reality.
Alter Ego, a brand of A Little Love, us, helps you break away from these limits, provide a safe space for you to try on the new persona in an empathetic community, and be your best self. Also, just in case, this is not our concept. There is already a very popular book on alter egos titled ‘The Alter Ego Effect’ by Todd Herman, and a couple of other bestsellers titled ‘Atomic Habits’ by James Clear, and ‘the power of Habit’ by Charles Duhigg that talk about changing habits and creating new identities . So honestly, we don't have anything new to say about what's already been said and written. Thus, we listen, empathize, enable, and empower indiviudals through our community programs and meetups. For more information, visit: https://www.alittlelove.co.in/alter-ego
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