7. There’s no single way to be a hero
• We’re all different, embrace it, UBU
• Be confident in your strengths, not
scared of your differences
• What makes you unique? What do
you do differently from others?
8. Why are superheroes important?
• Be someone others aspire to be
• Make the most of what you have
• Leverage all your resources
• Nobody’s perfect
• Challenges beget growth both professional and personal
• Nature is unique and so are you; revel in it!
• And the most important one……..
9. We can all be heroes
If your customer doesn’t view you
this way….
….You should be looking to
hire me
Editor's Notes
Heroes have been with us since we’ve been able to write. From Ulysses and Beowulf to Superman and Batman, we marvel at their adventures. Superheroes been a part of my life since I was thirteen. It’s a question my friends and coworkers have asked over the years. Why are you still reading comics? I think it’s because superheroes leave you with important lessons to use every day, even at work. What’s a hero?
"a hero is someone who rises above his or her fears and limitations to achieve something extraordinary ... a hero embodies what we believe is best in ourselves“
Fleming, James. "Review of Superman on the Couch: What Superheroes Really Tell Us about Ourselves and Our Society by Danny Fingeroth." . ImageTexT: Interdisciplinary Comics Studies. 2.2 (2006). Dept of English, University of Florida. 14 Feb 2016.
I believe that’s the ultimate key, what’s best in ourselves.
Let’s take a look at the premier superhero ICON, Superman.
There is a leadership theory called the best or better man theory. The leader is the one who bravest, fastest, wisest; the best hunter or warrior in ancient times.
This is the basis of the Superman mythos.
He’s stronger than us, faster than us. Hey, he flies! But it isn’t just his powers that make him the hero. It’s his character and his ability to draw out our better selves. If he serves as our ICON, he is so good, we want to be better too. They inspire us to be better.
The hero or superhero doesn’t just inspire, s/he gives others something to aspire to as well. If, with all that power, Superman is polite, what’s your excuse? If he can move a mountain to save a life, how hard is it to get your report out on time? To make that network link that just might help land someone a job?
Like Mike Rampolla (https://www.linkedin.com/in/mrampolla ) said, we all have something that makes us awesome. Something that we can do better than anyone else. That makes us super. What’s your something? And remember, it may not be a skill, it may be a situation you help overcome. You can be super to somebody.
Heroes teach us to value and use the skills and attributes we have to the fullest. Let’s take a look at the Batman.
Batman has no superpower to speak of. How did he join the ranks of superheroes? Well, like my mother used to say, “Don’t worry about them, use what you have, baby!”
What he does have is a particular set of skills and tools that he’s acquired. He’s honed what he has to be the best he can be.
How did he acquire those skills? Practice, practice, practice! He learned from the world’s best martial artists, gymnasts, etc. He practices with his acquired tools every day.
He keeps those tools at the ready in that marvelous utility belt.
As opposed to Superman, he judges, infiltrates, adopts the “strengths” of his enemies to become their weaknesses. He plans, he strategizes.
He understands the situation before he leaps in. He is constantly evaluating; changing strategies to fit the environment and facts. His mind is every bit as sharp as his bat knife and is in fact, his greatest weapon.
The lessons are right there. Keep your tools and skills handy and sharp. Be flexible on technique and strategy. How’s that resume/linked in page? Do you have your business cards ready?
By the way, isn’t his branding fantastic? One symbol, and you know instantly who we’re talking about. Batmobile, batphone, and batarang. I want his marketing coach!
With all the heroes around, you’d think we’d be in good shape, but we seldom work all alone do we? No matter how great your ability, you sometimes need an ability you’re not great at.
Even Superman can’t do it alone all the time. He can’t be everywhere. And huge challenges sometimes need a team to accomplish. Let’s talk about the Justice League. Just like us at work, where we usually work in teams to handle bigger challenges, the same is true of superheroes. Jason had the Argonauts. Hercules had other demigods and sometimes other gods from Olympus. Why?
You need to leverage the talents and abilities of the team. Even Superman might need the Flash’s speed, or the Martian Manhunter’s ability to turn invisible. (Bonus superhero points if you actually know the Martian Manhunter).
With all the superhero types teaming up, like any of our teams they need a leader. Who leads the Justice League, a team of heroes?
That’s a little bit of a trick question. Just like our teams, they all seem to take a leadership role periodically, but as a standing rule, the designated leader was Batman,
The least super-powered one of all. How do you figure that? He’s the king of strategy. All that power, to be realized, must be directed correctly.
We have an accountability team here at Right Management for job seekers. If you aren’t using them, you are missing something. There are a lot of skills around the table, some as amazing as your own. Are you leveraging them. Maybe you have a team outside of Right or at your current company, are you using everyone’s skills? Are you leveraging those skills to make the team greater than the sum of its parts? Look around, make sure you know who’s on your team. How’s your progress against the challenge? Teams are not a hindrance, they are source of added power and ability.
Nobody’s perfect; heroes included. Nonetheless, everyone does have ego and at some point, someone will utter the “image” word. Yes, heroes are ICONS, but they are not perfect. I give as an example, Iron Man. Tony Stark is a billionaire genius, head of a major company, working part time as a hero.
Also true, he’s a womanizing, recovering alcohol and drug addict, recovering from bankruptcy and a fear of commitment.
Don’t waste your time and energy pretending to be perfect. It takes away from your energy to do the job. People value honesty.
The “flaws” you’re trying to hide? Many of those are called character, some are the qualities that make you unique and human. Yes, some of those things do need to be improved. Please, if helpful, work on them. It’s what we all do. Just don’t fake it.
You be you. Nobody’s perfect and those little wrinkles add character.
Probably the most common things heroes are known for is overcoming obstacles. For superheroes, they are normally huge challenges. How do they do that? No matter how tough the challenge or how impossible it looks, heroes persevere in working to overcome that obstacle/challenge. They always seem to be able to draw from some inner well of strength and energy. More importantly, they seem to be able to self-motivate that energy into being by remembering the greater mission.
Do remember that perseverance and persistence, are appreciated, stubbornness isn’t.
They know that failures happen, but they are not permanent. They are opportunities to learn what to do better next time. Some of the epic failures pictured in comics that have stuck with me are an iconic picture of Captain America standing amid the smoke and ruins of the twin towers on 9/11. A tragedy he couldn’t help with because he didn’t know. Another is the death of SpiderMan’s fiancé Gwen Stacey. He tried a typical save but couldn’t get to her in time.
Failure happens, what did you learn? Do you need a new approach? New skills? A new team member or tool?
Growth opportunities are made from working on obstacles. Remember Jeff Percival’s (https://www.linkedin.com/in/jeff-percival-momu-4654b61 )
Lesson on how it takes an irritant to make a pearl. The pearl, a smooth object of valuable jewelry can only be created when an oyster finds an irritant and works and works on that irritant by covering it with layer after layer of pearl, until that irritant becomes a thing of beauty.
The lesson: failure happens, use it as an opportunity to learn and make a thing of beauty out of overcoming that obstacle.
One of the big lessons from the world of superheroes is that there sure are a lot of them. No two are alike. For every Captain America or IronMan, I can give you a Deadpool or Punisher. Both of those are kind of anti-hero types who do save the day, but not in regular superhero fashion. Deadpool is wise cracking, foul mouthed, and he does kill. The Punisher doesn’t think the justice system is working, so he is “assisting”. Not your typical heroes, yet there they are, saving the day in their own style.
What can we learn from that diversity of hero? We’re all different, embrace your differences. Be confident in your strengths, not afraid of your differences.
There’s a company that loves the way you work, go find them!
Remember, what makes you unique may make you not only different, but successful.
Summing up our lessons:
Be aspirational. Be the ICON where others can try to model your behavior/attributes. Remember, they may never have seen someone in your profession, make it memorable.
Make the most of what you have. Use the skills and tools you have. Practice them and keep them sharp.
Teams are useful and add to you resource and skill pool. Make sure you’re leveraging all your resources.
Relax a little, nobody’s perfect, nor do they expect you to be. Use your energy to solve problems, not pretend to be something you’re not.
Overcome your obstacles, they are growth opportunities for you.
Nature has millions of animals, insects, flora, and fauna. No two things are identical. Revel in your uniqueness and use it to your advantage.
Lastly, we can all be heroes. As a reminder I keep a little “comic” of my own.
You’ll find this on my binder for sessions where I currently attend outplacement services Right Management (http://www.right.com).
It was made by my team to help a customer recognize me. The customer was recognizing me after overcoming a challenge.
It was after we had created an automated factory and resolved several issues to make the factory productive and win an international award. She actually made me the cape (she was a seamstress). The team them used photoshop to make me into a superhero. When I feel challenged, I sometimes pull this out to remember that I can overcome this challenge too.
I was reminded of this while watching a superhero movie last weekend.
This gave me a theme to incorporate into my linked in profile, and got me thinking about the presentation that I gave to the Right Management class and served as the source of these articles. So the next time you find yourself standing amidst the rubble and smoke, the dark clouds are gathering, and things look grim; go ahead. Fire up the beacon. Pick up the phone. Make the call. Call on your inner superhero. They’ll be there. Promise.
