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What’s the first thing that comes to mind when you think about a hero?
Chances are that images of Superman, Wonder Woman or one of their super-counterparts come to mind first. As children, we love to believe in the possibility of being able to make right any situation gone wrong, to single-handedly overcome evil with good, and to be publicly loved for it!
Best-selling author, lecturer and host of TLC’s Shalom In The Home, Rabbi Schmuley Boteach recently spoke about heroes and their motivations:
“Always be the hero without the spotlight. There are two kinds of heroes. There is one kind of hero that is always in the spotlight—he’s in front of a camera and wants to make millions of dollars. That is a very showy kind of heroism. He lives to impress other people. Then there’s the hero without the spotlight, who is the one whose influence really continues.”
Our society today is programmed for instant gratification…if I do this for you, what’s in it for me and how soon will I get it?
What Rabbi Schmuley points to is a very different paradigm…I will do this for you because you need it or because it is just the right thing to do and I am able to help. I know I will find joy for having helped you, and beyond that I don’t know what other good may come from my efforts, although I hold hope that you will pay it forward to others. What if we were to hold our focus on freely giving what we are able, and allowing the rewards that flow from our actions to simply arise?
Although some live by this paradigm daily, it challenges the rest of us – why? It seems it has much to do with our perceived need to feed our egos in the present moment – like our superhero friends when they catch the bad guy and immediately receive public accolades. Perhaps we don’t trust that there will be any rewards for our actions, so why bother?
Think of leaders like Martin Luther King Jr. who made great personal sacrifices for the cause of civil rights in the U.S. in the 1960s, and never saw the full impact of his work before being assassinated. What drove him? He saw great injustice and chose to focus all of his gifts, talents and experience on what he could do. Did he expect to garner personal rewards and recognition for his efforts? I doubt it. Did he experience joy in knowing that the injustice was on its way to being overcome? Likely. Did he have a lasting impact on racism in the U.S. beyond his time? He sure did!
As leaders in community, we need to ask ourselves what is motivating our own actions (or inactions perhaps)? We don’t need to take on causes of the magnitude of civil rights in the 1960s necessarily (unless we do!). We do need to ask ourselves however where the needs or injustices in our own communties are and commit ourselves to bringing our unique gifts, talents and experience to bear on finding solutions. We might just discover that the rewards are far greater than we ever imagined!
So, consider the communities that you belong to (e.g., family, neighbourhood, faith group, special interest group, civic, etc.). What is one opportunity where you could lead in finding a solution to a need or injustice that others are facing in your community? What first step are you committed to taking to address it? Tell us below and inspire others in this community!
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Rather than focus on rewards for actions, what if we were to act from a place of gratitude? – gratitude that we have been given the abilities, inspiration and the choice to help where there is need. Instead of “what’s in it for me?”, what if it were about, look at all the gifts I have been given – what a privilege it is for me to be able to share them!