Busting the Chestbursters

Today is a gloomy and rainy day, making the weather tolerable for me to sit outdoor at one of the cafes I frequent at my local mall. It's great to be able to do so and hopefully with the advent of the monsoon season, the weather will be milder and I will be able to have more of such outdoor writing sessions.

The past week has been a typical one: listening to podcasts while working from home and going on calls with clients to resolve their technical issues. I work with a lot of 'amusement'--not treating anything too seriously. That doesn't mean that I do not give give my hundred percent in everything I do; it simply implies an attitude of non-attachment. Work is supposed to be fun, even though the task itself is difficult. 

If you work without any personal agenda, keeping your ego in check, work is never stressful. At the end of the day, everything that people fuss about in the company is making sure that they keep their job. No one is trying to save the world. This may sound cynical but it's not. It's simply putting things into perspective. Work is just an excuse for me to interact and banter with people. I'm just helping customers and colleagues, and there's no big deal about it. If I fall short, no one is going to die.

When you get worked up over something, always ask yourself: is that your ego trying to rear its ugly head? It always is. The ego is like the scary chestburster alien which you see in the Alien franchise movies. I remember watching that iconic dinner table scene when this creature literally burst into the scene (through poor John Hurt's chest). 

I watched the movie at the Cathay cinema in KL when it was first released. I was shocked, horrified and transfixed at the same time. It was a cinematic experience that was unsurpassed--a true masterpiece from director Ridley Scott. That scene deserves an entire blog article of its own. Back to the point I was trying to make: the ego is always lurking inside you and will force its way out when you are unaware. 

If you are familiar with the Alien franchise, you'll know that the chestburster is impregnated by the so-called 'facehugger', which latches on to the unwitting human who carelessly wanders too close to a ripe alien egg. In the case of the ego, we are already impregnated or are being impregnated all the time. It's just our psychological immune system that's suppressing these ego chestbursters from morphing into their adult phase.

This is like an alien video game that you are constantly playing in your head. Search and destroy all these ego chestbursters in your 'pain body' before they gain maturity. If you are not a meditator, this game could be your mindfulness meditation. Play it, because it's fun and it'll help you become a more easy-going person.

I guess we need a new paradigm for today's generation. Everything has to be gamified to suit our short attention span. Detect-zap-and-go. That's the way to be mindful of one's ego. Bust them before they grow into full chestbursters. Pun not intended.