Don't Journey Alone

Posted on November 30, 2016 by Jim Higgins, One of Thousands of Career Coaches on Noomii.

When I was 4-years-old, I remember life being full of an endless number of amazing possibilities. I could be whatever I wanted and no one ever told me anything different.

Whether I dreamed of being a race car driver, an astronaut or a clown – all were possibilities at that time in my life. Even unrealistic dreams like flying the Millennium Falcon or winning the Super Bowl were all on the table.

On November 3, 1984, my innocent naiveté took its first major blow when I discovered I didn’t have super powers.

I had this great L-shaped bunk bed in my room as a kid, and it allowed me to jump from the top bed to the bottom without hurting myself. I would spend hours on my personal indoor playground, only worrying about getting caught by my parents.

November 3 happened to be a Sunday and I know the date well because it’s my dad’s birthday. We had just gotten home from church and I had some time to play in my room before dinner.

Not finding jumping from the top bed to be as thrilling as it once was, I decided it was time to see if I could “fly” like my favorite superhero – Superman.

I don’t know what happened that day to where I finally had the courage to jump from the farthest corner of the top bed (I had contemplated it before) but I was set to do it that day.

I backed up as far as I could and after making sure I was in my best flying stance, I jumped with all my might and began traveling towards the bottom bed. To this day, images from that journey still flash through my mind when I think about the journey, with the last image being the side of the bed I was trying to land on.

I missed my destination and several hours later I came home from the hospital with my left arm in a thick plaster cast that weighed about as much as I did at the time. I was convinced my super hero career was over.

While I’ve grown out of jumping off beds and testing out non-existent super powers, I’m still a little kid at heart, wearing Captain America T-shirts, watching Avengers cartoons and still checking out the action figure aisle at Target.

What this has taught me is, even the most powerful people we can imagine, need help overcoming the obstacles and challenges they face. Batman has Robin, Iron Man has War Machine and even Superman calls on the Justice League when he can’t handle things on his own.

But what about those of us that don’t run around in custom armor or spandex? I believe we each have the power and skills necessary to overcome any obstacle we may face – many of us just don’t know how to access that potential. That’s where coaching comes in.

As someone that believes in the power of human potential, I stand as a champion for my clients even when they may not be willing to champion themselves. As a coach, that’s my promise to each and everyone of my clients that I work with.

I truly believe we are all naturally creative, resourceful and whole (a major tenant of Co-Active Coaching), and that with a little help you can conquer the obstacles in your path.

So be the hero and own your destiny. And if you’d like me to join you, I’m ready for an adventure.