Massive Goals

Will you be the next Superhero…Please?

Superheroes are brave, capable, and strong.  They have morals, power, and enemies.  They help the weak, overcome evil, and give their world another chance.  They are role models, responsible, and tireless.  But most of all, they are in short supply.

Apart from between the covers of comic books, Superheroes are a species that is practically extinct.  Men and women throughout history - Superheroes - have been changing the world in whatever way they can.  Even until quite recently, the world was still giving birth to new Superheroes.  Think of Martin Luther King, Mother Teresa, Mahatma Gandhi.  Remember Neil Armstrong, Nelson Mandela and Desmond Tutu.  These people were humans.  They didn’t jump tall buildings in a single bound or rescue princesses from dragons.  All they did was change history for the better.  They captured the situation they were in and moved people forward.  They solved a problem or pursued a mission that continues to improve things for humans around the world.

However, today it would seem that we just aren’t making any more Superheroes.  It is like we have broken the mold, if there ever was one.  Who, from today’s generation, will be remembered by the world for their lasting contributions to mankind?  Sure we have heroes, and perhaps more than ever before, but we have a serious lack of Superheroes to make a massive difference. 

Today, most of our heroes are business people, sportspeople, actors, musicians and mediocre politicians.  There is nothing wrong with being a hero for these reasons.  But how many of them will be remembered 20 years from now for their broad contribution to the world?  Many will make their mark on one area of culture or another, but who will be able to say that they really helped mankind?  How many of our current batch of heroes could we really call Superheroes?  I think the breed is dead.

What would it take to re-establish the breed of Superheroes?  A Superhero is simply someone who publicly solves a large problem.  A Superhero finds out what is wrong in the world and makes it right.  They needn’t where stretchy pants or live in a shroud of secrecy.  They don’t need to be super-human or immortal.  All they need is to put themselves in the right place so that they can serve men by solving an important problem. 

Today, most people have given up on this quest because they don’t believe it is possible.  Our problems are too big and complex or we are too small and underpowered.  This sort of thinking ultimately kills off the Superhero spirit that might otherwise come out in us.  We have to consciously resuscitate it, if we want to solve the big problems that humans face.

What does this world really need?  Apart from a fresh start, we need a tribe of people dedicated to solving our biggest problems.  We need people who can commit themselves to discovering serious solutions to our most pressing issues.  Who will step up to the mark and distribute the first world’s excess food capacity to the third world?  Who will dare to offer the same level of health care around the world regardless of race?  Who will design a system so that even the thirstiest people on earth can finally have safe drinking water?  Who will empower the people of the world to play their own part in stopping war? 

These things are being pursued in the quietness of active organisations all over the world as we speak.  People are trying to solve these problems, but for some reason their solutions aren’t working in a sustainably way.  Don’t take me as an expert here, because I don’t have solutions to these big problems.  But you can see where I am coming from, can’t you?  If our world can cultivate heroes who can attract millions to a concert to hear their music ; if our world supplies us with almost 1000 billionaires ; if even ordinary people can climb mount Everest today if they have enough pesos, then surely as a species we can find some people who are able to solve our more pressing problems.

How would someone step out on this path?  If someone decided to become the next in the line of Superheroes, their first port of call would have to be inside their heart.  True heroes aren’t motivated by personal gain.  They are searching for solutions that help all people.  These people would have to develop a serious and consistent compassion for our species.  An aspiring Superhero may be well advised to base their ambition on their love for people rather than on fame or fortune.  Maybe even ignoring themselves in their attempts to serve the rest of the world.  In fact any Superhero could do well to take on the attitude of serving others and seeing where this lead them.

An aspiring Superhero could well expect to be misunderstood, and underestimated until they make a breakthrough.  They could expect to make enemies of people who don’t believe in solutions.  They could expect a life of serving others to not be particularly comfortable or easy.  They could expect that their mission would be hard and honest work as well as being exhausting and close to impossible.  On the whole, the life of a Superhero is not for the lazy, selfish, insecure or greedy.

Is the role of Superhero too much to ask of a normal person?  Perhaps so.  Perhaps this is why there are relatively few people alive who may be competent as a Superhero.  It is one of those out of fashion occupations that only appeal to a small number of people anyway.  Out of that small number, only very few would have what it takes, and then only at great personal expense. 

Does the job seem appealing to you?  Do you think you have what it takes?  Are you willing to give it a shot?  If you are serious about solving some of our bigger problems, then maybe you should step up to the challenge.  Rather than signing on for a conventional life in a big company, consider a direction that could take you towards becoming a Superhero.  Take a step in the right direction, and see how it feels.  Can you imagine yourself solving one of our biggest problems?  Take another step and watch what happens.  Are you drawn closer to a particular issue in our world? 

Nobody is asking anyone to save the world by themselves.  What the world needs is leaders.  Superheroes who can engineer the rest of our efforts into productive solutions.  People who will motivate action and who inspire excellence.  They will become the Superheros of tomorrow as they start to build a better today.

Does this sound like you?  I hope so.

Thanks

Tom