You Are the Costume You Wear

Welcome back, everyone! By the time you read this, we have about eight-ish weeks until the end of 2022. Kind of crazy to think about, right? I wanted to spend the rest of the year preparing for next year with you all. 

I’m writing this prior to Halloween and our family has been preparing for a night of fun! Actually, we got a few uses out of my son’s Marshall (from Paw Patrol) costume already. He looks so cute in it, but I digress. 

Halloween is a fascinating day. People dress up in costumes and sometimes even act like the character. My son starts to wag his tail and stick out his tongue when his costume goes on. The only other time I hear about people acting this way is when they dress up for an event like ComicCon as their favorite character from a movie or television series. 

What is so fascinating about this is that the person can change who they are because of the costume that makes them look different. This form of dressing up allows them to mentally step into being a different person. 

As fun as dressing can be, I wondered if this could be used in a more practical fashion. I immediately thought about our first responders. I have so much respect for the work they do. It is both physically and mentally taxing, and they are literally saving lives. A real modern-day superhero. Then I wondered if putting on the uniform served as a reminder of the roles and responsibilities of their job, but also helped them show up with the level of courage, sharpness, and calm needed to accomplish their job with excellence. If you’re a first responder, I would love to hear from you about your experience!

Now here’s where it gets interesting and worth checking out for us. Not everyone can be a first responder, but what if you could don the outfit of a more successful version of yourself? Remember, you get to define what success is. What would that outfit look like? How would that version of you act? How would that more successful version of you feel on a day-to-day basis? How would you respond to adversity? What about when an opportunity arises? How quickly would you respond to that opportunity? 

After answering those questions, what could you do to put on the “costume” of the more successful version of yourself daily? You could even come up with another name for this person. If you do, what’s your character’s name? The more details you can have when thinking about this, the stronger the imagery becomes for you, and the easier it is to play the part.

What did you realize answering these questions? How has this changed or reinforced your idea of success? As always, let me know! Oh, and take a moment to thank a first responder!

Kevin helps people find breakthroughs to reach the next level of life while trying out various costumes. Contact him at kevinkoocoaching@gmail.com