A Master Key to Self Transformation
Three comedy films are hiding a beautifully existential secret
If you are trying to remember when you subscribed to me… It’s been over a year since I’ve written anything. I’ve been busy undergoing a metamorphosis of life transformation and braving a crucible of self-doubt. I will no longer be writing about TTRPGs (but will touch upon them from time to time because there is surprisingly a LOT to learn from the act of playing them that reflects the nature of who we are). My new writing focus will be a creative exploration of heart-driven topics that serve you in unlocking your true inner-creator power to radically change your outer reality for the better. If this new direction is NOT something of interest to you, that’s okay too. I’ve conveniently included an ‘Unsubscribe’ button.
Here is that beautiful Master Key secret:
Identity is your choice. Who you are, and how you see yourself innately is the key to it all. Who you are is not fixed, thinking this way is what is keeping you stuck. Your identity will determine your actions, worldview and it will continuously shape the associated experiences that you have over the course of your entire life.
Did you already know this? If so, fantastic! You’re already halfway there. My follow up question is - do you feel like you are currently embodying and living the identity that you would like to in the present moment? Or is something holding you back?
Regardless of “yes” or “no”, feel free to proceed with an open mind to what I’m going to discuss when we unpack it. If you have any feelings which “resonate” - meaning a positive energetic feeling from within, or a feeling of inner knowing within your heart - perhaps there’s something specific you were meant to read in this moment.
Before we go deeper, I’ll share three entertaining films that illustrate the beautiful idea of “identity shifting” in action.
The film Hitman (2023) starring Glen Powell and Adria Arjona is the first and perhaps the most poignant of them (negligible spoilers will follow). In the film, Powell plays a quirky psychology professor named Gary who acquires an interesting side hobby. He moonlights for his local police department, impersonating various flavors of “hitman” for sting operations. As certain as Murphy’s Law is, the situation shifts as Gary finds himself blurring the lines of his own identity and self-concept with the highly confident and extremely charming hitman alter ego “Ron”. Ron knows who he is, and what he is about. People also seem to really like Ron, more than they like Gary. Madison (played by Arjona) really likes Ron. Gary notices this phenomena play out while he acts as if he is Ron. This leads to an incredible philisophical monologue towards the end of the film.
If you would rather watch instead of read the next quote (Glen Powell is admittedly rather dashing), you can watch it here:
But I know that you’d rather be reading. From the script1:
"To be inundated, overwhelmed by perspectives and possibilities, because that is what life is offering you if you choose to look at it that way.
And I didn't always - I used to believe that reality was objective, immutable, we were all just kind of stuck, in a Plato/Descartes/Kant sort of way, but over the years, I've come to believe that the truth is created through the integration of different points of view, and there are no absolutes, whether moral or epistemological.
Now, I find this to be a much more empowering way to go through life, this notion that if the universe is not fixed, then neither are you, and you really can become a different and hopefully better person. Now, the one thing I know for certain is your reality will change over time, in ways you cannot even imagine, and I urge you to be open for this transformation...
...If I have one piece of advice for you moving forward in this complicated world, it is this: seize the identity you want for yourself, and whoever you decide to be after this... be them with abandon and passion."
A refreshingly deep exploration into the concept of identity flows in the undercurrent of the film, including how ‘who’ we embody impacts our behaviors, actions and more specifically, our REactions to the ever-changing reality that we perceive.
Hitman is on Netflix.
In Deep Cover (2025) an improv class led by Bryce Dallas Howard agrees to help a British detective by using actors for drug stings. Yes, this is a very similar conceit to what is going on as Hitman, no, it does not diminish the quality of this film. Deep Cover is filled with genuinely funny moments, and surprising insights you can infer from the characters’ actions and the way they experience their own transformations over the course of the film. One particularly funny scene centered around Howard illustrates the potential to experience resistance and bewilderment that can from loved ones’ reactions witnessing a change they don’t fully understand.
Deep Cover is on Prime video.
The Man Who Knew Too Little (1997) is a Bill Murray classic, which illuminates how wonderful one’s world can become when you begin to treat life like a stage with a role in mind. Although it seems to not have been as well received by critics, it illustrates a beautiful principle: that when you know and understand your role, and you understand the stage, it becomes borderline effortless to play the part.
The Man Who Knew Too Little is on Hulu/Disney+.
Despite the brilliance of these Hollywood comedies, identity shifting is not just a concept that makes for great cinema. There is real science backing this up.
This TEDx talk given by Dr. Benjamin Hardy admirably covers the concept. If you want to understand the essence of identity shifting, this is a wonderful place to begin.
Why Change Identity
There’s a much richer, much more confident, much more successful version of you that exists in an alternate timeline. And by using your higher faculties (creativity, imagination) you can figure out who that version of you is. And you can assume that identity to propel You 2.0 towards creating the timeline you want. Remember, who you are isn’t fixed, it can change as you need it to throughout your life as your reality changes.
But there is one more all-important key concept here, and this is will really amplify your path to becoming. This is the real master key:
It is the identity that is alignment with your True Self. It is your “I Am”. It is the version of you where your deepest dreams, desires, gifts and unique abilities align and shine a spotlight that magnifies your purpose and your work with laser-precision. Its the version of you that deserves full expression with the world, and the one that will allow you to live a life in the fullest and most expansive way possible. Its the version of you that already knows you are worthy simply because you exist. And it will make desired changes intuitive, effortless and natural because you already ARE that person. You just aren’t embodying them yet.
The path to the true self begins to unfold after you make the DECISION to become that person. You begin to think like them. If you feel as though you do not know who that person is (this is normal), you can still use these techniques to choose the identity that excites you in this moment and continue to make needed adjustments as you discover who you truly are and then be who you truly are, with “passion and abandon”.
This decision can occur in an instant! And it is a decision that won’t only happen once. It will be one you reaffirm to yourself every day as you see changes start to happen, first within you, and then around you.
Some of the changes will be miraculous. Other changes will incredibly subtle… until they suddenly aren’t.
So, be you.
Peace and love to all,Ron Ryan
I Am ’The Quantum Quill’
If this resonated with you, I’d love to hear from you.
The script for Hitman was written by by Richard Linklater & Glen Powell and is based off of a “somewhat true story". https://cdn.craft.cloud/df544f99-61e0-42fe-8101-68aa333f9f77/assets/HIT-MAN-SCRIPT.pdf?i1382054546?i=0fi0evqe2dlq