Do you remember watching Clark Kent jump into a phone booth and then emerge as Superman?  Kal-El was Clark’s real name, but because he was an alien and thought he would not be accepted, and at risk, if he allowed others to see who he really was…   He adopted an alter-ego to protect himself.

When we watch him on the silver screen we wait in anticipation for him to jump into that phone booth and emerge as his authentic self!

Bringing passion, strength, justice and intense awe to everyone that he come in contact with!

After reading a recent post by Terri Klass emphasizing the need for leaders to take off their masks, a previous co-worker came to mind. 

She had been hurt many times throughout her life, so much like Kal-El, she had come to the conclusion that she needed an alter-ego to protect herself.  (She just reversed the process…)  Instead of jumping into the phone booth to unleash her greatest gifts she would jump into her phone booth before she came to work to cover them up.  When she got to work she struggled to understand why she could not connect with her peers.

Occasionally her authentic self would break out and dance through the office.  She was awe inspiring: intelligent, witty, zany, and could connect with anyone about nearly anything!  In those moments when she showed up as herself, her peers did not know what to do.  Which persona was real?  They really liked this person, but how long would she be around before the alter-ego would return?  They wanted to trust her but they didn’t.

And as they struggled to figure out how to respond, she interpreted their pause as judgment and would quickly jump back into the phone booth and emerge as her alter-ego.

On more than one occasion we talked about her struggle and about the beautiful person she really was.  But it takes tremendous courage to emerge as yourself each day and in the time we worked together she was never able to completely let go of the alter-ego.

Years have past since I saw her last and I often wonder if she has ever embraced who she really is.  I hope she gets to live that way while she is still on this earth.  I know she will have more joy and more peace!

[Tweet “Are YOU a Clark Kent or a Superman? “]

My hope for her is the same as my hope for you…  Be Yourself!  Bring your superhero powers to this world!  We need YOU!

Please share!  Have you learned to unmask?  

Below are links to two amazing resources to help you and/or those you love:

• The Power of Vulnerability by Dr. Brene Brown
• The Apple in the Orchard a story about finding the courage to emerge as a leader by Sonia DiMaulo.

Special thanks to Terri Klass for bringing this story to mind again, and to Dan Forbes for challenging me to write about it!

Image credit: Cleveland Scene