I think everyone at some point either dreams of owning superpowers, is inspired by superheroes, or both. Yet it is sometimes difficult to relate to these iconic figures because they are otherworldly, superior in most every way and living lives we cannot possibly imagine.
The Last Son of Krypton is probably the most popular of these heroes of all time. Granted, over the last smattering of years, Batman has had a run of some epic movies, but Supes takes the all-time award (no matter how horrific Superman III or IV was). And I subscribe to the fact Superman is so popular because he is everything we all wish we could be, all while having many similarities to each of us.
Five for Fighting sings a song about the alien from another world, portraying him as a lonely outsider carrying (literally) the weight of the world. Haven’t we all felt this way at some, if not many, points in our lives? Misunderstood, alone, overworked, underappreciated and unable to fulfill the many people pulling us in many directions in the way they demand.
As a writer, I take inspiration from a great many places and things – sometimes ones that would be lost on others or a surprise.
I had never watched “Smallville” despite friends recommending it, until this past year; I guess I thought I would not be inspired by it or it would turn me off because of the changes to the Superman legacy. However, it was quite the contrary.
Not only is it superbly acted (Tom Welling and Michael Rosenbaum – kudus; and MR – PLEASE return for the final episode), but it does an amazing job of showing the alienation Clark Kent feels by being better than all average bears, unable to fit in and overwhelmed by the feelings of great responsibility, super-awareness and abilities no one else possesses.
“It’s not easy to be me,” the voice of Superman pines in the aforementioned Five for Fighting melody; and, again, I ask: haven’t we all felt that way? That no one understands us, cares about our perspective and appreciates what we do for them? And look at this guy: he is the world’s greatest protector, yet there are still haters and evildoers who try to dethrone him out of jealousy, sheer disdain or inexplicable corruption.
Believe me, I’ve been there, too!
The more power, responsibility and ability we possess, the more others want to rip it from us. The greater our aspirations, the more gifted we are and the higher we can fly, the tougher it is on our psyche, our relationships and our worldly view.
I, too, have a Fortress of Solitude: in my home with my daughter or in front of my keyboard writing. I, too, have kryptonite: the crippling self-doubt I have encountered over the years. I, too, am lifted by the Earth’s yellow sun: the beauty of this world can sometimes – even if just for a moment – make me forget about the sinister, hideous and frightening terrors that exist in this world.
We gravitate towards superheroes and Superman for the same reasons we quote inspirational people, we strive for more and we watch epic movies: because we want to live in that world.
Yet each of us, in our own ways, can be more than we are. We can have truth, justice and the American way. We can leap tall workloads in a single bound, run faster than a speeding line of bull, or be more powerful than a locomotive of the distractions all around us.
No need to look up in the sky; look close to home. For there is Superman inside each and every one of us.
Carson V. Heady has written a sales book unlike any other, entitled “Birth of a Salesman” that has a unique spin that shows you proven sales principles designed to birth in you the top producer you were born to be. It is a how-to sell/career advice book inside a novel about the fictional author who practices what he preaches.
If you would like to strengthen your sales skills, go to http://www.carsonvheady.com/
The Life and Times of Carson V. Heady 