Whether it be through our consciousness, our subconscious mind, our psychology, or our personality, we are each ourselves frequently emanating some of the most complex phenomena of our existence.
When we focus on this reality and allow a deeper inquisition to unfold, many hidden facets of our being begin to surface. So much so that one can easily get lost in the massive influx of information, and find it hard to focus.
Today, however, we will isolate our focus through one specific and highly intriguing aspect of our psychology—the alter ego definition.
A fascinating arena for us to explore, and one which will inevitably be perceived in many different fashions, depending on the context of one’s own perception.
That is, the term alter ego means different things to different people.
Once properly understood, however, regardless of our differing opinions, we can each individually become quite powerfully creative in how we ‘play with our ego’ in order to utilize its inherent beauty to our advantage.
Perhaps first, before we dive too deeply into this, we should take a more in-depth look at some of these variations.
What does it mean to have an alter ego?
Whenever you hear of or read about the alter ego definition, it’s generally going to point you in one of these 5 directions:
- The “other self”. It resides beneath your outer personality and is usually an amalgamation of many sub-personalities. Something distinctly different from your conscious personality, forming as a secondary byproduct of the initial ego formation process itself.
- Your idealized self. The type of personality that we adore from a very early age—one we idealize and wish for—is who we are. Certain aspects of this self may also be present in the other self that is hidden within us.
- The evil part of your soul. Some experts believe that there are inherently both good and evil parts of our being, constantly at war within us. In this case, our alter ego definition refers to the evil part of our being.
- Your trusted friend. An aspect of yourself that is very similar in characteristics and personality to your outer personality. It‘s essentially like having a voice inside your head, which you frequently speak to in an attempt to understand yourself.
- The intentionally designed personality. This refers to a phenomenon where you create a new version of yourself as your alter ego.
Which Alter Ego Definition Is the Most Significant?
A lot of possibilities and different information here, and all of it is truly fascinating. Yet, although each of these perspectives is certainly compelling in its own regard, we needn’t focus too intensely on all of it.
The alter ego definition is most significant here in two regards.
- The first alter ego definition overlaps with the second, composing the primary understanding of psychological research and its theories. It’s important to note that these two definitions are essentially the same, as the “other self” is often built in an idealized fashion.
- Our fifth alter ego definition from above is the most practically important in our day-to-day lives, as it ultimately shows us that we are capable of utilizing our alter ego to manipulate and manifest the best possible life for ourselves.
There is a powerful implication here within these two focal points that we can take away from this. What all of this means is that we all have multiple dimensions of our personality, each of which insight a massive impact on our everyday lives.
This being so, may you then ask yourself this: Wouldn’t I want to be more aware of these impacts, and perhaps find myself with a greater degree of control over them, if I could?
Of course, you would.
The impacts of our alter ego
The alter ego is a force to be reckoned with.
And although having an alter ego is often frowned upon, perhaps even revered as something negative in today’s society, it’s important to note that this is not necessarily always the case.
The impacts of our alter ego are indeed significantly more far-ranging and will encompass both negative and positive qualities alike.
An adequate ability to differentiate between the two sides of this spectrum is then going to find its roots, in first properly understanding the alter ego’s overall potential impact.
And so, among many other such impactful happenings, here are some of the more prominent:
- Hidden aspects of our alter ego secretly influence our attitude, lifestyle, and decision-making process. Something which could be positive or negative, depending.
- The subconscious desire to become like our idealized alter ego can make us depressed and hamper our lives to a great extent. Or, it can motivate us to do everything humanly possible to become this very ideal.
- An unacknowledged, uncontrolled, and resultantly strong alter ego can overpower our usual personality, creating personality disorders and other kinds of psychological issues. But again, a strong alter ego can also be quite beneficial.
- Further, an unacknowledged alter ego will often speak out on our behalf, and can drastically misrepresent our true intentions in work, love, and life.
As we build from these roots of understanding, finding an ability to manipulate the impact of our alter ego, in the direction of something positive, begins with our awareness.
Does everyone have an alter ego?
The truth is, we all have an alter ego, or two.
Yes, whether you like it or not you have both an ego and an alter ego.
As we allow ourselves to become aware of this, we will then find a heightened ability to ‘engage in a creative play’ with both our ego and our alter ego.
The by-product of this creative play becoming something which we can deem “positive”, develops secondary to an embodiment of proactive development.
Look at it this way: More often than not in today’s societies, we develop our egos, and resultant alter egos, reactively. We’re essentially just thrown out into an ego-dominated world at a very young age, and without proper guidance, we find ourselves reactively assimilating to the norm in whatever way we can.
We want to fit in, we want to be accepted, and we react in accordance with these desires.
We all build ourselves an ego, and at some point, we all inevitably face a time in our lives when someone, if not everyone, questions the basic construct of this ego that we have created for ourselves.
Again, we just want to fit in, we just want to be accepted, and thus, the alter ego is born.
What is an example of an alter ego?
Powerful examples of such an alter ego can, in fact, be found everywhere in today’s society, both reactive and proactive development.
As a matter of fact, many of these examples will probably surprise you.
Lady Gaga is the alter ego of an ordinary girl, Stefani Germanotta.
Believe it or not, the proactive creation of this alter ego turned Stefani Germanotta into the absolute sensation that is Lady Gaga.
Another great example of proactive development can be found in how Beyonce has created her alter ego Sasha Fierce. A representation of herself that is both more sensual and more aggressive, at least in her performances. Moreover, Beyonce has even gone on to create more than one of such alter egos in order to boost her career and performance.
And with many, many more examples of people using their alter egos to become something more than they already are, the question inevitably arises: Can you too reap the abundant benefits of your alter ego?
Surely our answer here is yes, you can.
How do you create an alter ego?
So, how do you create yourself one of these beneficial alter egos?
Again, proactively, and not reactively.
Although you may indeed already have an ego and an alter ego that has developed in a reactive sense, acknowledging this reality immediately allows you to begin anew.
If you can develop your own alter ego definition which has been developed proactively as opposed to reactively, or if it is at the very least understood objectively, then your alter ego can have massive beneficial and therapeutic effects on your life.
If you can direct an intentional focus on the parts of yourself that you wish to change, or make better, and allow a character to build around these attributes which actually flourish in each regard, then you will reap massive benefits, naturally.
Do so through the lens of objective awareness and maintain a reasonable degree of humility.
Because certainly, your alter ego can become the most beneficial of all psychological phenomena, but let us also not forget that it can easily become something very hazardous as well if left unchecked.
