You have a million emails.
Several client projects to work on at once.
Unanswered social media messages.
Your own information products to somehow find time to create & market.
And maybe you’ve been contemplating a site redesign to boot.
Shit happens.
The question I have for you is this: when said shit happens, how do you view yourself? Do you see yourself as inundated by outside forces? Do you get frustrated and testy and moan under the weight of it all? Do you see obstacles?
Or do you see the path? In the story you tell yourself about yourself, your mental self-image, are you a victim?
Or are you the hero of your own story?
It’s ironic that we love for everything to come to us effortlessly, and yet to observe that in somebody else would make for the most boring movie ever. Oh, look, everything went as planned… AGAIN, lah-ti-da!
You can’t be a hero without going through hardship. You’re gonna have moments of pain and crisis and how you see yourself will make a huge difference in how you go through life and whether your story has a happy ending.
You’re an entrepreneur. You’re a coach, consultant or freelancer. You want people to hire you.
People want to hire heroes.
Remember that.
Image attribution: Randy Son Of Robert
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This, is bad ass belief system to operate your life from… “People want to hire heroes!”
It reminds you to bitch slap yourself out of behaving any way that isn't heroic.
And your post also makes me think of this call to courage incantation that I've gotten from Tony Robbins that I don't pay nearly enough mind to…
“Now I am the voice.
I will lead not follow.
I will believe not doubt.
I will create, not destry.
I'm a force for good.
I am a leader.
Defy the odds!
Set new standards!
Step Up!”
A shit-ton of positive energy flows through my body when I read this out loud in a powerful tone. And I think it's because like your post Michael, it calls to the hero that I am and everyone else is at their core being, that I've covered my up with junk programming.
Thank you for this reminder to get in touch with what's really true.
You gotta activate your powers somehow!
“People want to hire heroes”
If I was a lawyer, I believe that's called leading the witness
Good question here Michael. I see it as a blessing. Too much work is a great problem to have. Still a problem, but way better than the alternative of waiting for the phone to ring.
So, give the choice of victim or hero, I choose Super Hero. No tights for me though
Also, capes are bad. Remember what the Incredibles taught us about capes.
Hello Michael, So glad to have come across your blog! I can relate to the “weight of it all” quite well. However … I'm definitely not a victim (unless I’m a masochist because I placed myself in this position
), yet I don't fancy myself really a hero either. For my clients, I consider myself more their zealous advocate and at the end of the day; yes, I could say that I want to be a hero, for sure, for my child; as a working, single mother – she needs me to be that!
Any hardship I define as growth and opportunity. It’s the whole understanding of how steel is made that helps define me as an entrepreneur and that analogy works for me. Sometime I laugh though and think, “Well how much more fire do I need already!?”
Thank you for this post and allowing me to comment. Have a great weekend! With kindness, Elena
Glad this connected with you, Elena. I like that idea also of “how steel is
made.” Indeed!
I alternate between being a victim and hero all the time. Depends on the day, time and context.
Love the pic BTW
All week, I've spent my time trying to NOT be a victim. It's exhausting. Sometimes even superheros have to have a victory.
Mary, I can relate! Glad you like the pic. Hooray for Creative Commons licensing!
I know you're not a fan, but my best model for this is Howard Roark. Not hero, not victim, but 100% in tune with his own reality.
That's cool, I understand the idea he represents for you. You must be
somewhat excited about the Ayn Rand movie that's being made?
I can't tell yet – I'm not expecting a great movie, but I'm glad they made the effort. Something different to watch.
[...] How you see yourself matters. Michael Martine, the Remarkablogger, tells us why. [...]
[...] Victim or hero? Your choice. Each carries consequences. [...]