Disguise: The ability to become another person. We discussed the multi-fit moccasin mind. Learning to think like another helps us to understand and act like them, so they will accept us into their fold. This gives us access to all kinds of juicy insights. To further this pursuit, the secret agent frequently resorts to disguise. A disguise is a mask that covers up what you are and makes you appear to be completely different. The foremost mask that you wear is your personality. Persona means mask in the root languages. So your personality mask is made up of your distinctive characteristics and qualities. To appear different to someone, you must change those personality traits. Most of us have some practice in this. We go for job interviews and pretend to be far more accomplished and resourceful than we actually feel. We “put on a brave face” when challenged, even though we may be quaking inside. We use disguise to become something that we are not. Read that twice. What personality traits do you feel you are lacking right now? Do you want to be sunnier? More optimistic? More dynamic? A go-getter? Charming? There is a legend from the Far East of a wicked king. He was so fierce and nasty that his subjects were all afraid of him. His face was ugly with cruelty. A beautiful princess ruled a nearby land. She was so sweet, kind and innocent; everything about her was good and that greatly attracted the king. He ordered his army to go and conquer this land and bring the princess back to him so that he could make her his wife and “get jiggy widdit”! When they brought her back, the King approached the girl to ask her to be his bride but she quailed at the site of his terrible face. The King was mightily pissed off. He wanted the girl to love him as he loved her. He called for his most trusted advisors and sought their counsel. After much deliberation, the wise elders returned to the King and said. “Let us make you a magic mask to wear your majesty, and on it we shall engrave the qualities of kindliness, goodness, joy and love. When the princess looks upon you, she will see these qualities rather than the fierce qualities of your own face. As long as you wear the mask, no one will suspect what a horrible git you are!” (They probably whispered the last sentence!) So the old Magi went off and made the magic mask out of fine wax, painting into it all the wonderful qualities that they wanted the King to appear to have. They took it to the king and moulded it to his face. The King was very pleased as he gazed at his new face in the mirror. “Now the Princess will love me!” he told them. But inside he was thinking how cute she’d look spread-eagled on his bed! Seeing his lecherous look, the Wise Men hastily added, “Hold on your Majesty, stall your Kingly ardour for just a moment. We must warn you of something. For this magic to work, you must hold in your mind all the noble qualities we have moulded into the mask of love, peacefulness, joy, kindliness, compassion and beauty. If you think bad-ass thoughts, the mask will shatter and our deception will be undone.” After a few days of practicing with his new mask, the king sort out the princess. She was astounded by the change in him. He romanced her like a true gentle man and won her heart, and she soon became his queen. Score! A few weeks into the marriage, the king sort his counsellors again in a much vexed state. “I can’t keep deceiving the woman I love like this; remove the magic mask and let her see me as I am. Better have someone behind her to catch her if she faints!” Well, with some trepidation the Wise Men removed the mask and were astonished to see that the king’s face now bore all the positive, magical qualities that had been painted into the magic mask. The king’s face now reflected all the wonderful qualities that he had held in his mind. He and the queen lived happily ever after. And this all goes to show, as Stuart Wilde says, that you can “Fake it till you make it!” So disguise yourself well as a dynamic creative genius with plenty of bounce!
Posted on: Tue, 09 Jul 2013 01:30:01 +0000
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