In this episode we discuss a proven way of overcoming the self-doubt, negativity, and insecurity that hold you back and we show you how to ultimately become your best self using a unique and unlikely strategy. We look at legends from pro athletes to MLK and uncover how they used the same exact strategy to get into the zone when it counts. We discuss all this and much more with our guest Todd Herman. Todd Herman is a high-performance coach and author of, 'The Alter Ego Effect: The Power of Secret Identities to Transform Your Life'. He is the creator of the 90 Day Year a performance system which is designed to create results for business owners, fast. He has worked with Olympic athletes, Entrepreneurs, and Leaders including members of the Spanish Royal Family. He's been featured on the Today Show, The Good Life Project, Inc Magazine and more.Nature is the ultimate litmus test of whether or not an idea has credence and truthIf something doesn’t exist in nature - we need to look at it and understand itBalance does not exist in nature - but equilibrium does If you want to achieve big things, if you want to explore your capabilities, you have to throw yourself out of balance, you have to push past your comfort zone, to achieve big goalsIn order to achieve big goals, you have to give up focus on other areas of your life to do it Integration is far more important than balance - how do we actually integrate things into our lives? How do you move beyond the idea of work-life balance and move into integration?An alter-ego can be an internal trusted friend. Bring an ally inside your mind. How do you get into the zone? How do you get into flow states? An alter ego ALLOWS you to have permission to achieveHow to leverage the science of "Enclothed Cognition” to transform yourself and create a powerful alter ego that can help you achieve anything How legends like pro athletes and Martin Luther King would use physical props to tap into their alter egosThe idea that you are one single self is completely flawed. Life is about context. You are different people in different contexts. You don’t build an alter-ego for your entire life. You build specific alter egos for specific contexts and opportunities.To meet force with force does not help when dealing with difficult people. All it does is prolong the tantrum and create problems. Be like Mr. Rogers.Don’t fight against yourself, leverage the way you naturally behave and turn that to your advantage.Resistance comes from the unconscious and is extraordinarily powerful. Willpower comes from the frontal lobe. It’s like a mouse fighting an elephant. At your core, you have unlimited possibility - you have to decide and choose WHO you are and WHO is gonna show up to get the results you want. If something is getting in the way of you doing what you want to do or know you can do - THAT’S being inauthenticWhat’s the critical difference between being childish and child-like? And why does that matter?Homework: Define what “field of play” it makes the most sense for you to use an Alter Ego in. Start with - what area of life are you most frustrated with?Homework: What are the traits you most want to bring into that field of play? Is there anyone or anything that already embodies that? A fictional character? A real person? A historical figure? Is there someone that you’re really drawn to? Your mind is constantly telling stories - if you tap into an existing story that’s already been written - you harness the power of it. Ask yourself - how can you ACTIVATE that? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.