Regenerating the Impact Superhero within you

We need all Impact Superheroes, now more than ever.

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But by all accounts, superheroes who work on impact are exhausted, burnt out, bogged down in data, reporting, resistance, and endless internal alignment.

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Within the Impact space, I come across Corporate Sustainability leaders often, though I know this to be true of business leaders who care about impact, and about leaders in other spaces like DEI, peacebuilding and more.

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I see Impact Superheroes who shone big, bold, bright, now dimming their light. I see emerging Impact Superheroes who are finding ways to cope, meditate, upskill, and do so many other things besides really leaning into becoming superheroes. I see aspiring Impact Superheroes watching what’s happening in the profession and staying away.

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If you are an existing, emerging or aspiring Impact Superhero, remember, if you can find it within you to reignite your Superhero-ness, you could make your wildest impact dreams come true.

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So how do you determine whether you can find it within you do reignite your Superhero-ness? How do you make sure you don’t burn hot and then fizzle out once you do?

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Here are three traits I have learned about all superheroes I have ever known in comic books, in classical literature, and in real life:

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• Inner work: the Superhero does the inner work on identity, purpose and what they stand for. This work is murky and never ending. This work is what fuels the Superhero’s inner light to keep going in the face of all odds.
• The impossible doesn’t scare them. It doesn’t excite them. Wildly impossible odds, scale, speed and headwinds, are the norm of Superheroes. Once they operate at this level, it becomes the level they achieve. Their superpowers help, of course, but more humans have superpowers than we realize.
• A-Team: the Superhero is not a Superhero in every matter. They often have a team of supporters and collaborators who have other skills and superpowers. This includes team members who build tools and solve problems in the background. This team always has each other’s back and gives room for each person within it to regenerate.

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We are at a very interesting time of the year. In many parts of the world, people are about to slow down ahead of a summer break. Those in the Impact space or sitting on the sidelines waiting to dive in will have several major global convenings they can attend between September and December, to enable them to learn, connect and influence the way forward. The end of 2024 will be here before we know it, bringing with it for many existing, emerging, aspiring leaders employed in companies some year-end conversations about how the year has gone, and where to next? This is the perfect time to reflect and reset.

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If you are that existing, emerging, or aspiring Impact Superhero, consider what inner work will relight you, what impact you could achieve in your wildest dreams if there were no constraints, and what your ideal A-team looks like.

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Wherever you are in your Impact Superhero journey, I would love to hear from you. Do get in touch, comment, etc.

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