What If You Can Fly?

Rollins: “Mom, I really want you to watch all the movies in the Marvel Cinematic Universe with me this summer.”

Me: “Hmmm, how many are there?”

And so he started counting them by name until he had used up all ten of his fingers and was still counting.

Me (inside my head): “You have got to be kidding me!?!”

Me (out loud): "Sounds fun."

We both knew it would never actually happen. After that initial conversation, I succumbed to Ironman 1 and 2.  I only fell asleep once during the second movie. But then, this happened.

Rollins: “Mom, before we see Spider-Man: Homecoming at the theater, you’ve got to catch up on the rest of the movies.”

The Marvel Cinematic Universe Summer Movie Marathon

Over the last seven days I have watched Captain America: The First Avenger, Thor, The Avengers, Ironman 3, and Thor: The Dark World. Tonight, we’ll be watching Captain America: The Winter Soldier. Tomorrow night will be Avengers: Age of Ultron. Wednesday night’s viewing is Captain America: Civil War. Then (drum roll, please), we are seeing Spider-Man: Homecoming on Thursday night. 

Why am I telling you all this? And why in the world do I think you should be interested?

Because, what if you can fly?

After watching approximately 25 hours of superhero movies, I had a revelation. I love superhero movies! 

We all have so much in common with these characters. They all have a backstory. So do we. They have have superpowers that they unlock while reconciling their backstory. So do we.

Our superpowers are what I call strengths. They are the aspects of you that you enjoy so much, that you are so good at, that you never want to stop doing, that define you. But you usually don’t see them. They are so much a part of you that you think everyone is also good at these things, or thinks about the things you think about when you are using your strengths.

Strengths are essential to the coaching and strategy work that I do with my clients. When one of them recognizes their strengths for the first time, it’s as powerful as watching Thor use that big, huge hammer to slay the bad guys.

How could you be walking around completely unaware of your superpowers?

It’s like this clip from Captain America where we see Steve’s courage for the first time.

He didn’t think before jumping on the grenade. He just did it. Because it’s who he is. It's what sets him apart from the others.

Just last week, I had the opportunity to review a StrengthsFinder assessment with one of my clients. In her top five themes, she had Intellection, Connectedness, and Deliberative. As she shared her story of shopping for patio furniture with me, I could see how these strengths played out for her. She researched and read about different types of patio furniture, then she shopped around for quite a long time, but when she saw what she was looking for - she didn’t hesitate. When I asked her if people often come to her for advice and to help them make decisions, she exclaimed, “Yes! But I always thought everyone’s decision making process was just like mine!”

See, like Steve jumping on the grenade, my client had been leveraging her superpowers and sharing them with everyone around her without actually recognizing them.

But what else is possible once you know and own your superpowers?

Here’s what one of my clients, Patrick, had to say after just one session about his strengths:

You were able to explain each of my strengths and how they work together. I have always known I was different from most people, you showed me how I can use that to my advantage. That one coaching session was one of the most productive and helpful hours of my life. I've never been so excited about my future.

One of my superpowers is guiding others through the process of unlocking and discovering theirs.

Are you ready to recognize and own your superpowers?

I’m offering single coaching sessions to unlock your strengths. During our session, as you share your backstory with me, I’ll listen for examples of when you’ve used your superpowers, ahem, strengths to prevail. We’ll discuss those examples and come up with a plan for you to leverage your strengths to achieve your goals: whether they include saving the world, getting a new job, or making a grocery list.

How do I sign up and what does it cost?

Strengths Sessions are the only opportunity to work with me outside of a coaching package. The cost of the 45-minute session and StrengthsFinder assessment is only $150 when you use promo code SUPER. After you pay for your session, I’ll send you my online calendar to book your session and a link to complete your StrengthsFinder assessment. The assessment will provide your top five strengths in a detailed report.

Will you share your superpowers?

How are you using them to contribute to something good in the world? How can I support your mission? Please post below :)

P.S. If your child invites you into his or her world, it's probably because there's something worthwhile to find. Next time, I won't be so hesitant to go all in.