Why do we have heroes?
Throughout our lives there are certain individuals that we deem worthy of our admiration and our respect. They often include movie stars, professional athletes, and sometimes they even are people we actually know!
Who would have thought?! ;)
From the time we are little kids we often choose someone to look up to. In first grade it might be the boy who can kick the soccer ball harder than us, or it might be the batman or superman character that we are currently donning on our underoos.
As we get older our heroes tend to shift. Instead of a marvel character that can fly through the air, we may choose to look up to someone who can do things we can't do in the athletic arena. Or we might look up to someone who can do things we can't in the business world, or a model that we wish we could look like.
I am sure it is no surprise to you understanding that we have heroes, but my question is why do we have heroes? What is the driving force?
Heroes give us something to strive for.
As kids we wish we could fly. We wish we could fight crime and then save that damsel in distress. Really, those are reflections of what we wish we could do ourselves. As kids we may not realize that we can never really become a super hero, at least not in the sense that meta humans are... (no matter how hard I try I will never be able to shoot webs out of my wrists)
However, what we don't realize is that we are actually using them as goals we would like to achieve ourselves. Goal setting is a very natural and healthy human phenomenon. Without goal setting none of us would really do much of anything. When we seek out others as heroes we are using them as motivation to achieve the things we want to achieve in our own lives.
Heroes are a reflection of what we wish we could be.
When I was a high school basketball player one of my heroes was Steve Nash. At the time I loved basketball and I placed high value on players that could do it all on the basketball court, while at the same time be outstanding human beings. Now I never met Steve Nash to know what he was like for sure, but from the research I did and from the things I saw of him, I was content that he was a pretty awesome person.
What I didn't realize at the time is that Steve Nash was partly my hero because he represented what I had hoped to be. He wasn't much taller than me and he wasn't a mind blowing athlete, so I could relate to him. Combined with the fact that he wasn't that much different than me physically with the fact that he encompassed the things I valued, it is very easy to see why he was my hero at the time.
It wasn't that I thought I could never do what he did, it was the exact opposite. I thought that if I strived and worked hard enough I could do what he did one day. He represented what I wanted to become.
Heroes sometimes can do things we only wish we could do.
The previous paragraph just discussed how heroes are often people that we wish we could be and think we actually have the possibility of becoming. However, that is not always the case. Sometimes when we value something so much we will make someone our hero that is nothing like us and can do things that we could never do. We are so impressed by them that we have no choice but to look up to them.
This reminds me of Tiger Woods.
I grew up in a golf family where we had a club in our hands by the time we were 6 years old. My dad was a golf coach and was out every weekend honing his skills. Naturally,the obsession ran deep in mine and my brother's blood as well.
I remember spending hours upon hours reading Tiger Wood's book and trying to copy and emulate everything he did in his golf swing. He was able to do things no ever golfer before him had ever done. He seemingly could bend the golf ball to his will. It really was incredible. However, after hours and hours and years went by I started to realize that no matter how hard I worked, I would never be Tiger Woods. I would never be able to generate as much club head speed as he could and thus it was futile for me to continue chasing that fantasy.
That realization didn't stop me from being in awe of the things he could do on the golf course and because of that he was my hero for a long time.
Heroes are a reflection of our own thoughts and beliefs.
If we value honesty and integrity, our heroes are likely to be people that encompass those traits. If we value singing ability or good looks our heroes might have those characteristics. If we value extreme athleticism, our heroes might have those characteristics. The point being that when looking at someone's hero, we are most likely looking at a mirror image of what ideals and characteristics they give value to in life.
Think for a moment about any heroes that you might have in your own life and think about why you have designated them with the title of "my hero". I think you will see very clearly that just about every one of them encompasses traits that you yourself place a high value on.
Who is your hero?
I have mentioned both Steve Nash and Tiger Woods as heroes of mine growing up, as well as a couple super heroes thrown in for good measure (Batman). However, my heroes today look very different than my heroes from when I was younger. In fact it is actually quite funny because my hero now is actually the same person that was my very first hero when I was old enough to designate such things.
As my values on what is important in life have changed over the years, so have my heroes.
My hero today is my father. He doesn't play in the NBA, hit the golf ball 400 yards, or sneak out at night to fight bad guys (although he might, I am not sure). Instead he takes care of his family. He provides for them by working a job that he really doesn't enjoy very much yet he never complains about it. He lives a life of integrity and honesty. He's a great father to his kids, a great grandfather to his grandchildren, and a great husband to his wife. He is also a great example of how a man is supposed to act and what a man is supposed to be.
Myself being a new father I have started to understand exactly how great of a man he truly is and I am striving to be half the man that he is. With that goal in mind, hopefully some day I will get there...
Thanks Dad!
Who are the heroes in your life? Share in the comments section below.
Live well my friends!
Image Sources:
http://susieshellenberger.com/hero/
https://blog.richmond.edu/heroes/tag/definition-of-hero/
http://gazettereview.com/2016/04/tiger-woods-net-worth-income/
http://alfa-img.com/show/your-my-hero-dad.html
Follow: @jrcornel
real life heros with us @jrcornel not marvel comic stuff right
Yes that's right, although I do still own a pair of pretty awesome superman underoos! ;)
Love this post! When I was growing up my hero was Jackie Joyner Kersee. I never wanted to be an athlete exactly, but I looked up to her because she was an asthmatic who never let it get her down. An asthmatic who could run, of all things. This was a huge deal to me because I was an asthmatic who really couldn't do anything it seemed. About a year ago, my husband was working in DC and ran into her. She was there doing a charity event. He had no idea that she was my hero as a child. He apparently had a lovely conversation with her about the weather and traffic, lol. Lucky man, he is, lol!
Wow, that is a great story! Very inspiring! I grew up battling asthma as well... Luckily I "outgrew it" as the doctors said, so it really doesn't give me any trouble now. That is a neat story though. Thanks for reading and sharing!
This is a nice post, I hope you become every bit the great father your's was, and then some.
Thank you! Me too :)
You'll be a great dad. I have no doubt!
Thank you for the kind words Tom :)
The most interesting stuff and I like it
Thanks!
Edward Snowden, Cody Wilson, Chelsea Manning, Ross Ulbricht, Rosa Parks, Harriet Tubman, Oscar Schindler...
Anyone helping others to freedom.
Nice list! Thanks for sharing!
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