In other words, ” the guys in tights are just like any of us“, as those who know them best say. The only difference is that in real life there is no room anymore for a secret identity – as DC’s protagonists (Batman, Superman) are used to – but rather both identities coexist, as is more common in the Marvel universe.
The real task is to prolong this dynamic over time. By keeping up the good work at home and becoming a better professional every day. Without either facet being conditioned by the other. An extra point that fictional superheroes don’t seem to have to face “given how easy it is for them to escape from their work responsibilities when their super-heroic duty demands it“.
This is what Mariajo Arias points out in her book ‘Salvando el Mundo en Pijama’ (Saving the World in Pyjamas), stressing that many of them suffer from “job insecurity such as Matt Murdock, aka Daredevil, whose law firm barely survives as his partners spend more time recovering from injuries than working“. “But the most glaring case is Spider-Man“, who barely makes ends meet by delivering pizzas and selling photos to his newspaper editor.
Nothing to do with Oliver Queen, aka Green Arrow, or Bruce Wayne, better known as Batman, who everyone knows are multi-millionaire superheroes. Except for them, the rest don’t have it easy.
Mutations in organisational culture
All this in terms of a normal working day. Let’s introduce the variable of overtime into the cocktail shaker. That required by the family environment is non-negotiable. And the professional-related? Well, it appears to be as well. The National Statistics Institute’s Quality of Life Indicators survey reveals that long working hours are more common than previously thought, so that although the working week cannot exceed 40 hours, 8.3% of Spaniards work 49 or more hours a week. This is a burden that puts the work-life balance out of balance.
That is why we must learn from Spiderman. The superhero powers should be deployed more in family missions than in professional ones. As Matthew Gutierrez reports in The Detroit News, “Climbing the career ladder without sacrificing family time is a challenge”. But it’s worth trying rather than “learning the hard way”, as indicated by high divorce rates stemming from neglect or regret over not being closer to the little ones, because life goes by so fast and they soon start flying solo.
The more balanced superheroes there are in the company, “the easier it will be for new recruits to adapt and improve the organisational culture, optimising results“.
How to become a better professional within your superhero team
This is a notion shared by Alexander Maasik. “Just look at the Avengers,” he points out. For this public relations expert and author of the blog weekdone.com, the most interesting thing about this superhero dream team is “to witness how people who are used to doing their own thing have to come together, communicate and form a team to make the most important stories happen. It is essential, however, that a leader communicates the goals of the team and the company to the superheroes“.
Organised work will allow for better management of achievements in order to become a better professional, while still ensuring some time off “so that the Avengers know what they have to do in order to avoid becoming villains“, as Maasik sums up.
Sources: Weekdone.com, Detroit News, BBC, New York Times