Finding your inner Batman

So, how can you actually build an alter ego for big meetings?

1. Find out where your ‘gaps’ are.

What do you want to work on? What do you need to improve? What aspects of your personality tend to fall by the wayside when you become stressed?

2. Find some inspiration

“Find a person or an alter ego that inspires you and motivates you to be the best version of you,” says O’Connor.

This might be a real superhero or it might simply be someone you see as a hero – your professional idol, your favourite actor, your best friend.

“It’s not about becoming an actual superhero; it’s about leaning into the qualities you already have but just need to supercharge,” she says.

3. Get creative

“Have fun with it,” suggests O’Connor. “Give the alter ego a name, visualise the character.”

If you really want to embody this ‘character’, make them as real as possible. Think about their walk, their voice and their behaviours. Then try to embody them.

“Visualise how you apply these characteristics in everyday situations,” says O’Connor. “How would your alter ego walk into their interview or answer that tough question or present in that meeting?”

The Batman effect: why you need to create an alter ego to see you through your next big meeting