Have you ever thought how much easier your life would be if you were a superhero? I know I have. Think of all the great superhero powers there are! Flight, invisibility, extraordinary strength and one of my favorites, the ability to breath underwater like Aquaman. Unfortunately, it’s not realistic for humans to be superheroes but we can all be heroes or heroines if we choose to be. While being a heroine does not come with superpowers it does come with powers and gives us great advantages. In this 3 part article I am going to tell you why you should heed the call to adventure and choose to view your life as a heroine’s quest.
Traditionally, a hero or heroine was defined as a person or main character of a literary work who, in the face of danger, combats adversity through impressive feats of ingenuity, bravery or strength, often sacrificing his or her personal concerns for some greater good.
While most of our lives are not literary works we are all writing our own life story so why not cast ourselves as heroines? I did just that and chose to write my own heroine’s quest. It is a fictional series entitled “The Adventures of Isabelle” that chronicles the life of an adventurous princess. Book I: The Embryo Goddess and the Morpho, takes readers into the kingdom of Xamayca to the formative years of Princess Isabelle, a fearless demigoddess, daughter of the powerful Sun King, Vata Helios and the imperious, yet stunning Ice Queen, Cythona. In my newly published Book II: Journey to Orphalese, Princess Isabelle and an eclectically beautiful cast and crew are on a mission to rescue the people of Orphalese, a colony of Xamayca being held captive by the dreaded pirate Captain Flint.
Joseph Campbell introduced the concept of the Monomyth or Hero’s Journey in his book “The Hero With a Thousand Faces,” (1949) and the concept has been expanded on by others such as Christopher Vogler, best known for working with Disney and his screenwriting guide, “The Writer’s Journey: Mythic Structure For Writers” (2007).
Campbell describes the narratives of Buddha and Christ as being in the model of the Monomyth or Hero’s Journey. Countless other stories follow this same arc such as Star Wars, The Wizard of Oz, Black Panther, Wonder Woman and, yes, our lives too!
Let’s focus on the 8 stages of the Hero’s Journey from Campbell’s model that I find most helpful for my success-coaching clients and in my own life. I will explain each stage and give examples of parallels in everyday life.
1) The Call to Adventure: The heroine begins in a normal setting but is compelled into action after a life-changing event or receiving some unexpected information. This information can come as a message from an outer source or internally from ones subconscious. She then heads off into the unknown.
In Book I of The Adventures of Isabelle it is a tragedy that necessitates the Princess leaving the safety of the palace to set off on the high seas to Orphalese.
In real life, any number of things may prompt you to leave the safety of your mundane life in the ordinary world for the exciting, yet unknown territory of greatness. Some examples include inner yearnings for things like spiritual growth or love or external changes like the loss of a job or a loved one.
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Great resource!
