Oops! We had to remove the hero profile you’re looking for because it will soon appear in our new book Heroic Leadership: An Influence Taxonomy of 100 Exceptional Individuals, to be published by Routledge in 2013.
Our contract at Routledge required us to remove many of our profiles on our blog at this time. But we do have other hero profiles and information about heroes on the menu bar located on the right side of this page. Check it out!
Oops! We had to remove the hero profile you’re looking for because it will soon appear in our new book Heroic Leadership: An Influence Taxonomy of 100 Exceptional Individuals, to be published by Routledge in 2013.
Our contract at Routledge required us to remove many of our profiles on our blog at this time. But we do have other hero profiles and information about heroes on the menu bar located on the right side of this page. Check it out!
Oops! We had to remove the hero profile you’re looking for because it will soon appear in our new book Heroic Leadership: An Influence Taxonomy of 100 Exceptional Individuals, to be published by Routledge in 2013.
Our contract at Routledge required us to remove many of our profiles on our blog at this time. But we do have other hero profiles and information about heroes on the menu bar located on the right side of this page. Check it out!
Our contract at Routledge required us to remove many of our profiles on our blog. But we do have other hero profiles and information about heroes on the menu bar located on the right side of this page. Check it out!
People are often motivated to improve their traits, abilities, and health. Self-improvement is one of four central processes involving the "self", according to Psychology Professor Constantine Sedikides and his colleagues at the University of Southampton, England. The three other processes are self-enhancement, self-verification, and self-assessment. According to a 2009 article published by Sedikides and Erica Hepper, self-improvement has historically been portrayed in our society as "obligatory, inevitable," and "moral."
A number of people have made it their profession to help others improve; these people include teachers, coaches, mentors, and healthcare workers. We call these individuals transparent heroes because they often invisibly make their positive contributions behind the scenes. Tony Robbins is one of the few examples of self-help gurus who have attained celebrity status for motivating people to become better. But most motivational writers and speakers are content to do their good work in obscurity, finding that helping others is its own reward.
Ralph Marston is a striking example of such a motivating individual. Since 1995, Marston has been composing and sending positive messages about living a good life over the Internet, Facebook, and Twitter. His daily messages are brief, never exceeding 200 words on his website, and never more than 140 characters on Twitter, where he has 100,000 followers. His uplifting messages urge readers to embrace a multitude of positive values, such as gratitude, discipline, purpose, love, acceptance, balance, and focus.
Marston describes himself as just a "regular person" in his mid-50s, living in Austin, Texas, with his wife and kids. "I have always been interested in personal development," he said, "and I've applied many of the concepts I've learned, to my own life and business."
The popularity of Marston's daily messages initially caught him by surprise. "I've been amazed at the tremendous positive response that it has received," he said. "People from all over the world, in all walks of life, have a sincere interest in living lives of meaning, caring, dedication and fulfillment. I am extremely grateful that the technology of the Internet affords me the opportunity to share my work with so many people."
We suspect that as long as people are driven to improve themselves, there will always be people like Ralph Marston to help them on their journeys. "Self-improvement is adaptive," wrote Sedikides and his colleague Michael Strube. "Improving one's social, physical, and intellectual skills is a vital prerequisite for exceeding old boundaries and achieving goals far into the future." Sedikides also notes that "self-improvement instills a sense of progress and hope" in people.
According to Ralph Marston, one of the keys to self-improvement is the ability to identify one's weaknesses. "When you're honest with yourself about your weaknesses, and willing to put some effort into working on them, you've identified a powerful pathway for self improvement," he said. Marston has good advice for people going through tough times in their lives. "You can wallow in self pity or you can seize the opportunity for self improvement," he said. "In every disappointment there is the seed of fulfillment. In every weakness there is the seed of strength."
One recurring theme in Marston's work is the idea that the possibilities of creating value in our lives are unlimited, and that each of us can choose to make that value come to life in our own unique way. Below is a video clip offering a sample of Ralph Marston's self-improvement philosophy.
Every summer seems to have its share of movies featuring superhero protagonists, and the summer of 2011 is no exception. This year we have Captain America and his fight with World War II Nazis. There is also the Green Lantern's battle with the awesome power of Parallax. Perhaps topping them all is the Norse God of thunder, Thor, who must overcome the Frost Giants and the treachery of his own brother.
Movie studios are releasing more and more superhero movies with each passing decade. Over the past few summers, ultra-successful films have been made featuring Batman, Iron Man, the X-Men, and the Fantastic Four, to name but a few. We appear to be enthralled by tales of people who possess superhuman powers, who are confronted by evil, and who overcome formidable obstacles in triumphing over the direst of circumstances.
Why do we identify with super beings with magical powers? One reason is that the creators of superheroes endow them with a crucial flaw or limitation that makes them very human in their vulnerability. Almost inevitably the superhero's flaw jeopardizes his life and the lives of those he wishes to save. With a small assist from a sidekick, often a mere human, the superhero is able to overcome his shortcomings and vanquish the enemy.
Quite early in the movie Thor, we encounter the superhero's three flaws: pridefulness, impulsiveness, and blindness to the manipulations of his evil brother. These shortcomings of Thor lead to his banishment to earth, where he must live as a mere mortal. As with most superheroes, Thor receives help from a variety of sidekicks, including a beautiful scientist named Jane who becomes his love interest. She falls in love with two very important characteristics of Thor which are typical of a superhero: his chiseled body and his mysterious origins.
The greatest source of Thor's superpower is the hammer Mjolnir which, after his banishment, is only accessible to him if he proves himself worthy to receive it. After Thor has lived for some time as a mortal human, his arrogance begins to soften and he gradually acquires compassion and wisdom. At the film's climax, Thor is engaged in a great battle with a seemingly indestructible automaton sent to earth by his disloyal brother. Battered and near death, Thor offers to sacrifice himself to save others, a proclamation that affirms his worthiness to wield the hammer and defeat both the automaton and his brother's evil rule.
To ensure a sequel, the movie ends with a few loose ends. Thor is separated from Jane, and not all the villains have been defeated. We look forward to seeing what happens in the next installment of Thor.
One final caveat: Phil Zimbardo, a social scientist and expert on heroes, has lamented the fact that most people's default image of a hero is the classic superhero with superpowers. According to Zimbardo, this mindset prevents people from recognizing that the most important heroes in our society are average, everyday people who lack superpowers but who do the right thing when called to do so.
Zimbardo may have a point. We should indeed see ourselves, with all our puny human limitations, as potential heroes who can make a positive difference in people's lives. At the same time, we see no harm in escaping into fictional worlds in which extraordinary beings such as Thor are able to transform entire societies with their super-strength and super-morals. These superheroes may be just the right elixir for those of us who need an entertaining refuge from the dark realities and mundane routines of daily life.
