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Superhero Business Leadership Lessons

Superhero Business Leadership Lessons
Vala Afshar
By 

Chief Digital Evangelist, Salesforce

Chief Digital Evangelist, Salesforce
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Most business leaders are learning about the explosive impact of technology mega trends - cloud, mobile, social, apps, and big data - and their potential impact to either destroying existing business models, or help shape new markets, where unknown companies emerge as tomorrow's industry giants. There are 500,000 new startups created in the US every year and 50% fail within 1 year. Of the remaining survivors, another 50% fail within 3 years. In the knowledge sharing and hyper connected economy, it sometimes feels like the only answer is superhero leaders who can help us achieve the impossible.

In order to compete and win, perhaps today's business leaders can reflect on what our superheroes have preached in the past. Some of our most revered superheroes are also successful business executives and company owners, including Tony Stark and Bruce Wayne.

Why do underdogs win? Because they know they can.

Here are 50 business and leadership lessons from our most admired superheroes:

  1. "Govern yourselves with love, kindness, and service to others." - Wonder Woman

  • "With great power comes great responsibility" - Spider-Man

  • "You want to control me, and you can't. But that doesn't make me your enemy." - Superman

  • "Courage is nothing without the will to use it!" - Iron Man

  • "Don't make me angry. You wouldn't like me when I'm angry." Bruce Banner - HULK

  • "Everything's impossible until somebody does it." - Batman

  • "No one can win every battle, but no man should fall without a struggle!" - Spider-Man

  • "I went from being a man trapped in an iron suit to being a man freed by it." - Iron Man

  • "This nation was founded on one principle above all else: The requirement that we stand up for what we believe, no matter the odds or the consequences." - Captain America

  • "Mankind is not evil, just uninformed." - Prof. Charles Francis Xavier, X-Men

  • "No Capes!" - Edna, The Incredibles

  • "You can overcome this or you can wither and die. The choice is yours." - Batman

  • "It's never as bad as it seems. You're much stronger than you think you are. Trust me." - Superman

  • "Failure is the fog from which we all glimpse triumph." Iron Man

  • "We've all been where you are. Someone helped us when we needed it. Now it's time to pay it forward." - Rogue

  • "Men fear most what they cannot see." - Batman

  • "It takes a great deal of bravery to stand up to your enemies, but a great deal more to stand up to your friends." - Dumbledore, Harry Potter

  • "Becoming an Avenger is not a right... but a privilege!" - Iron Man

  • "I have a new role... and I must meet the obligations it imposes". - Wonder Woman

  • "No matter how many times you save the world, it always manages to get back in jeopardy again. Sometimes I just want it to stay saved!" - Mr. Incredible

  • "This is worth the risk!" - Spider-Man

  • "So much to do, so little RAM." - Iron Man

  • "Sometimes you get so involved with microscopic details that you miss the big picture." - Superman

  • "I should have known when I chose to walk this path. It never ends." - Batman

  • "I need a day when there aren't twenty crises to deal with, but I don't see that coming any time soon." - Iron Man

  • "You have your definition of a hero and I have mine --- and mine includes being a lot more aware." - Captain America

  • "The stronger I make my armor, the longer I live! And I must live on! There is so much unfinished work to be done!" - Iron Man

  • "Yes, words are useless! Gobble-gobble-gobble-gobble-gobble! Too much of it, darling, too much! That is why I show you my work!" - Edna, The Incredibles

  • "Humankind has to be allowed to climb to its own destiny. We can't carry them there." - Superman

  • "You counter despair with hope. You strive forever for the best you are capable to be! Therein lies the victory!" - Storm

  • "This is a strange land, an environment dangerous for those unprepared for it." - Iron Man

  • "I'm loyal to nothing, General...except the dream" - Captain America

  • "The most important weapon in your arsenal will be your ability to adapt." - Batman

  • "Of all people you know who I am. Who the world needs me to be, I'm Wonder Woman." - Wonder Woman

  • "A man's worst enemy can sometimes be himself." - Superman

  • "It's just that I hate anybody to skip around town in a jazzier costume than mine!" - Spider-Man

  • "I have only a short time left to live..." - Iron Man

  • "I don't do this for the money." - Batman

  • "You will be different, sometimes you'll feel like an outcast, but you'll never be alone." - Superman

  • "Enter freely, and of your own will." - Storm

  • "My armors maneuverable, fast, and lots of fun at parties." - Iron Man

  • "I'm going to try to break the link in the unreal world." - Batman

  • "I believe that true focus lies somewhere between rage and serenity." - Prof. Charles Francis Xavier, X-Men

  • "What we have here is a failure to communicate!" - Spider-Man

  • "... Remember Tony Stark not for what he did ... but for what he tried." - Iron Man

  • "We're seeking justice, Alfred. How can that ever be a mistake?" - Batman

  • "Reliving the glory days is better than acting like they didn't happen!" - Mr. Incredible

  • "I know everything. I can't help it." - Iron Man

  • "Never ignore a hunch." - Batman

  • "All I did was help someone find his dream." - Captain America

    • I would love to learn about your favorite superhero lessons. Please comment on your favorites and I will surely do my best to share with my network.

    This post was co-authored by Rich Casselberry.

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