As children we grow up watching superhero films and cartoons and everyone seems to have a favorite hero. Growing up I found I loved SUPERMAN! How can you not love superman he is SUPER. Then the other day when we were going to watch the new film Superman with Henry Cavill one of my players asked me why are we watching this, superman is overrated! I was so caught off guard that I went into utter shock about how someone could even consider superman being overrated. So I decided it was time for the world to understand how amazing Superman really is!
I understand the argument that Superman isn’t that great because he is born with all his powers, unlike other hero’s like batman who is a man that chooses to create himself into a hero (which I think is another impressive statement on its own). The reason I believe Superman is the greatest superhero of all is because he is born with all his powers, he could do anything he wanted to and no one has the power to truly stop him. Which in many peoples eyes makes it look like he lives an easy life but something that is so simple that many people overlook when it comes to Superman is that he makes a CHOICE everyday to be a positive influence in the world. With all his powers he could easily rule the world and walk around with an arrogance that enslaves the people around him. But instead he makes the choice every day to use his power for positive influence, when he is having a bad day he chooses to do the right thing not what he wants to do. He makes SACRIFICES for the cause and that cause is HOPE.
This might seem like a simple idea but when you think about your everyday life how many times have you had to make the decision between what you WANT and the RIGHT thing to do? FEEL vs ACT one of the hardest things to separate when working with a team because it usually means there is a sacrifice in some way or another. Now the ability to separate FEEL & ACT is no minor act and can usually have a positive or negative effect on a team chemistry. Now when you apply this thought process to the concept of SUPERMAN, who has to make this decision in every moment of his life you can have a stronger understanding of why I believe SUPERMAN is such an inspiration. If he made the decision to do what he FELT LIKE rather than what NEEDED to be done then he could have blocked out the light at the end of the tunnel that would have destroyed all hope for people around him. But he made a choice to use his ability to help others rather than himself. So here are the lessons we can learn from SUPERMAN and use to everyday life:
1. FEEL vs ACT:
Just because you can do something doesn’t mean you should. DO THE RIGHT THING. Separate your feelings of what you want from what you need to do!
2. SERVE
Sometimes you need to SACRIFICE your personal gain in order to help the team in their mission. When the team benefits, you benefit! Superman sometimes would sacrifice his personal needs in order to help the people.
3. THE LITTLE CHALLENGES ARE JUST AS IMPORTANT AS THE BIG ONES
Everyday we face new challenges, some are big & some are small. The small ones are what builds character and the big ones test that character. Superman was born with strength but the strength could have made him a negative impact on the world if he didn’t overcome the little challenges along the way! His choices in his everyday life are what made him a superhero, not his abilities.
4. BELIEVE
Sometimes you will only see the NEGATIVE, but during the dark times you need to believe that there is a way! There is always HOPE as long as you believe.
5. POWER VS CHARACTER
Your abilities will get you so far but your character will keep you there. If superman didn’t make decisions based on his values people would not trust him and he wouldn’t be able to have the support of the people.
SUPERMAN MAY LOOK LIKE AN OBVIOUS SUPERHERO BECAUSE OF HIS ABILITIES BUT IT IS HIS VALUES THAT BUILDS HIS CHARACTER AND MAKES PEOPLE BELIEVE IN HIM, WHICH IS THE REASON HE IS A SUPERHERO.
"One with Heart & Mind" 