What is your Identity?

There was an incident at the coal mine. An explosion. Five dead bodies, no signs of any chemical reaction, no traces of any exploding device.

The town sheriff and his team are on their way to the scene. They arrive to perform a forensic investigation (taking pictures, collecting evidence, fingerprints swabbing, etc.)

The next day, a medical examiner from out of town arrives to do autopsies on these 5 dead bodies, looking for clues that can give the investigation more information about this whole craziness.

In the autopsy room, he begins moving the first body to an autopsy table to be examined. There are no visible fragments on the body's surface to suggest that this explosion originated from a bomb.

He then makes a Y-shaped incision on the chest and the abdomen, which allows access to the rib cage and internal organs. The ribs are then carefully cut to provide space for the examination. Now with clear access to the chest cavity, the examiner can visually inspect, remove and document the condition of each internal organs one by one.

During this autopsy, he finds nothing unusual. He then stitches the rib cage back together, and moves on to the next one.

He continues doing the same thing with the next 3 bodies. But this time, there is something odd. These 3 bodies all have one thing in common. No blood was left in any of their internal organs, nothing, as dry as beef jerky.

As of this point, there is one dead body left to examine.

Suddenly, the electricity went out. “Thunk”, something heavy drops on the ground in the refrigerating room where they keep the bodies. The lights turn back on, and the examiner feels uneasy. He moves cautiously towards the body room and is startled to see a lifeless figure, eerily upright and lunging directly towards him, as if attempting to grasp his neck. He staggers backward in shock, but before he can react, everything goes black.

When he regains consciousness, he finds himself lying on an autopsy table. As he lies there, still trying to make sense of the strange situation, he notices something incredibly weird. The same lifeless body that had attacked him before is now lying beside him on another autopsy table. But now, it's not lifeless anymore. It's actually doing the same autopsy procedure on itself, like it knows exactly what to do. It begins with a Y-shaped incision on the chest and abdomen.

His heart starts pounding because as the body's rib cage cracks open, it reveals something totally crazy. A weird creature, kind of like an octopus but really slimy, crawls out of the body.

This strange creature looks right at him and, in a voice that sounds like it's from outer space, says it's searching for a new home, a new body to live in. And it's decided that he's the perfect fit. It explains that it's chosen him because he's a forensic pathologist, someone who works with dead bodies all the time, and it can easily access the blood it needs from those bodies.

Now, there is a valuable lesson from this alien encounter: It's okay to let go of your old self and embrace a new identity if it gives you an advantage. The alien's ability to change and become something different, all for the sake of getting what it needed (like access to blood). It showed that being flexible and seizing opportunities, even if it means becoming someone new, can lead to unexpected benefits and personal growth.

When you're building your personal brand, think of it like running a business. The lesson here is that you should be ready to change and learn new things. Just like our alien friend transformed to get what it needed, you, as an entrepreneur, might have to adapt. You'll need to be flexible, learn new skills, and step out of your comfort zone. For instance, even if you're not a fan of sales, you might have to learn it and reach out to new people. Being open to change and growth is vital.

Hey hey hey, if you made it this far, thanks for reading. I wanted to jazz things up a bit with this horror themed email that was inspired by a series I found on Netflix (who would’ve thought watching Netflix could be productive).

Alright, hasta la vista!

Justin “embrace a new identity” Nguyen

P.S: When you’re ready for a new identity, that attract the right audience. I’m looking for 2 more creators who want to start monetizing their brand. Whether you're just starting or already on your journey, simply reply to this email or DM me on Twitter