The phrase, “transformation wizard” is actually redundant. The word “wizard” is first recorded in use in the 1400s and was used to denote a wise person who could “see” the future. (Psychic abilities aside, the best way to see what the future holds is to change your thoughts and actions such that you can create it.)

Wizards were known as the go-to folks for transformation. If you needed your lead transformed into gold, your local wizard had the alchemical goods. Wanted to transform your ho-hum life into the summum bonum – a life of the highest good? The village wizard had the mystical know-how to get you there.

I understand if you’re thinking, “Nice history lesson, but how does this apply to me?”

The song remains the same

If you have followed my writing and speaking for any length of time, you know my purpose is to help you find your purpose. It goes like this: a life of purpose insulates you from existential dread. When your dread (anxiety and depression) decreases, your well-being increases. As your well-being increases, you are more likely to create a better life for yourself and those around you. This is the summum bonum about which Cicero wrote in the summer of 45 BC.

It is also the reason I took graduate degrees in clinical psychology and clinical hypnosis and have spent most of my working life as a professor and a counselor.

People still seek a better life for themselves and others. We just don’t call it the summum bonum. To get there, we use science in the form of exercise physiology and nootropics and cold plunges and pilates. We just no longer call it alchemy. And we seek to transform our minds to better align with our spirit through meditation and mindfulness and religion and communing with nature. We just don’t refer to it as mysticism any more.

Nowadays, we don’t need a wise person with a pointy hat and an incense burner to effect positive change in our lives (although millions of people still go that route, and that’s ok too). We can transform ourselves.

You are the transformation wizard

Transformation is the result of thought and action. You have to think about who you want to be and where you want to go before you can get there. Once you see what you need to do, you have to actually do it. Et voilá! You are now the wise person who sees and can change the future – your own wizard.

It takes time and effort to change yourself. I realize that you may not have an isolated castle in which to study your arcane arts. You may be working two jobs and taking the kids to piano lessons and soccer matches. I know how easy it is to get distracted from the work of becoming a better and happier person.

This is why I put so much of my own thought and action into the things I write and speak about. My hope is that my effort will help you find and maintain your own course.

A little help from your friend

My work is loosely organized into blog posts like this, where I address the philosophical, “mystical” side of psychology and personal development, and newsletters, which focus on scientific, “alchemical” tools you may find useful. My podcasts are a mix of all of the above and anything else that interests me.

People in search of personal transformation frequently encounter two persistent challenges. The first challenge is beginning. The resources on my website will help with this, as I related above.

The second challenge is the fear of appearing naive and uninformed. No one wants to be a “noob.” But think about it: how can you know what you don’t know? You have to acquire knowledge and skills to be a guitar player or carpenter – or a transformation wizard.

Self-development is a life-long education. Adopt an attitude of “beginner’s mind” and realize that it is ok to not have the answers.

The quest to find your purpose is not an end onto itself. There may not even be a final answer to that question, because you grow and evolve over time. Once you get close to an answer, however, you have only just begun. Then you must act in accord with your purpose, however you understand it at that point. This is where the magic happens, where you begin to transform and to positively impact your tribe, your community.

The journey is never finished, as long as you are alive and conscious. You will find great joy, satisfaction and resilience in the becoming, no matter how refined you have become.

Even Gandalf transformed from “the Grey” into “the White.”

As always, I welcome your thoughts. You can reach me through the comments section on my Substack or Medium accounts or the blog section on my website. If this article as of value to you, please follow my Instagram and Twitter accounts. And be sure to subscribe to my River Of Creation podcast – The Podcast for Creators! – coming later this year.

Be well; do good!

• JWW