The 1 Thing Successful Entrepreneurs Have In Common With Batman Begins
Recently, I've been rewatching the Christopher Nolan Batman trilogy and have picked up on several themes that have inspired me as a Maker and aspiring entrepreneur.
I love how Bruce Wayne and Lucius Fox identify problems and iterate on existing designs to come up with new solutions (like Batman being able to turn his head). It's inspiring to see Bruce refuse to be beaten as he tries again and again to climb out of Bane's prison, The Pit, despite failing several times. Both of these examples are what Makers and entrepreneurs face every day.
But there is 1 thing in common with Batman that all successful entrepreneurs overcome (and failed ones don't).
Why Bats, Sir?
As Bruce and Alfred are building out the Bat Cave and creating the Bat Suit and different gadgets Batman will use, Alfred finally asks Bruce about his theming with, "Why bats, sir?"
Bruce replies, "Bats frighten me. It's time my enemies shared my dread."
As we know, when Bruce was a child, he fell into a cave and was terrified as bats swarmed all around him. This terrifying experience stuck with him as he was trained by Ra's al Ghul until he ultimately overcame it.
Don't Run From What Scares You, Own It
Just like Bruce became Batman by owning what scared him instead of running from it, we can become successful entrepreneurs by owning what we're scared of.
Think about your to-do list and what you're avoiding on it. Is it that one task you really don't want to do, don't want to make a decision about, or aren't sure if you have enough information about? Even if you don't want to admit it, you're putting it off because something about it scares you.
Instead of putting your limited time and energy into letting it scare you, own it and make it your strength. Just sitting down today and knocking it out or making a decision will show you that it wasn't as scary as you thought and there was nothing to fear anyway.
Your enemies—your competition—also share your fear or have conquered it already.
