Written by Karen D. Swim
Dr. Christiane Northrup has one and recommends it to other women. Beyonce has one who made her own album. David Bowie’s is famous. Miley Cyrus shares the spotlight with hers. Mine has been the cure for my fear of self-promotion.
Meet my alter ego, Sasha the sales champ. Not the multiple personality disorder, on the verge of a breakdown alter ego. A persona or role if you will that was the antidote to my fear of selling, boldly going where I could not.
My journey to finding Sasha forced me to take a hard look at my own fears. When I was an employee, my face brightened when asked about my job. I enjoyed what I did and was proud of my company. I never worried about being overbearing because sharing what you did was a normal part of getting to know others.
It was so easy when someone else’s name was on the shingle. What had changed? Me. I was emotionally attached to the product in a way I had not been in corporate. Selling had migrated from a routine business practice to a reflection of me as a person.
I needed distance and Sasha afforded me that space. An alter ego provided me the luxury of stepping into a selling role with nothing to fear. Sasha realizes that it’s her job to find other people to help. She believes in the company and knows that it is not overbearing or intrusive to talk about what “we” do. She is building two-way relationships and understands that part of her giving is letting others know what you have to offer.
When I tell Sasha my fears, she rolls her eyes and responds, “Duh, if you don’t tell people what you do, how will they know?”
We want to buy from people we know and trust. We also want to refer to people we know and trust. If we’re all too polite to let people know what we offer, how can we give and get support? My alter ego understands this principle. She has not allowed herself to be saddled with unessential emotional baggage.
My fear of selling was rooted in disordered thinking. Sasha allowed me to adjust my lens and change my perspective. Sometimes a little distance is precisely what the doctor ordered.
Have you ever created an alter ego? In what way did it help you? What did you learn about yourself?
Tomorrow we will examine specific changes that we can make to self-promote without triggering those internal alarm bells.