The Grasshopper asked me to ask you if you wear a social mask. Today is Halloween and wearing masks is the custom for many people – young and old alike. It’s fun pretending to be someone else – not to mention the fabulous treats in store.

How much fun is it pretending to be someone you are not the other 364 days of the year? Only you can answer that.

The social mask is the ego – the part of you that you made up and got comfortable with. It has your name, your occupation, your social security number, so it must be the real you. Sorry, it’s only a costume!

Because you dress up as Batman or Wonder Woman, doesn’t make it real. I’m reminded of the line Joan Cusack delivers in the movie Working Girl. It goes something like this:

“Sometimes I vacuum in my underwear. It doesn’t make me Madonna – never will.”

It’s amazing how much of what we do or don’t do is governed by this fictitious facade. Here’s a test you can take to see if this character you play has taken you over. Do you ever plan in advance what you are going to say if someone says a certain something? That planned response is coming from your ego. What would happen if you just sat with what the other person said for a moment and just let a response bubble up to the surface that you hadn’t pre-thought?

That answer comes from the real you. The result of this practice is a more authentic communication that is not governed by the predetermined stimulus/response that the ego thrives on.

Seems everyone is curious who is under the mask – be it The Lone Ranger, Zorro, Spiderman or Catwoman. People are wondering who’s behind your mask too. Give them a peek today and see what happens.