Bat Boy Syndrome and Remarkable Art
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How’s everyone doing? Today I thought we would look at something by Seth Godin. He always seems to inspire with his little stories, so I thought I would share his quick story about striving for personal success and achieving greatness.
“Here’s a common fantasy: Your team wins the pennant. It goes on to the World Series. It wins! And you’re there for it, all along, the bat boy, helping out the sluggers, doing your job, proximity to greatness.
The line to get a job at Disney and Google and Pixar is long indeed. Countless people eager to get picked to join a winning team. Not as the person who is going to have to step up and cause success, no, the opportunity sought is to be on the team, to bask without being asked for heroics (which of course, carry risk).
The industrial culture, the resume-building mindset—it’s no wonder so many have bat boy syndrome. The alternative, the alternative of picking yourself, is frightening because we’ve been hoodwinked and brainwashed into believing that it’s not up to us. But it is.” ~ Seth Godin
When I heard the title I immediately thought of Batman and Robin, but after reading I realized they meant baseball. It can apply to Robin too. He’s just the sidekick…proximity to greatness, so he gets to “bask in the victory without being asked for heroics.” Ok, he comes in handy every now and then, but he’s no Batman….and he’d be nothing without Batman. He’s just tagging along for the ride.
The point is, we need to try and create something amazing for ourselves. Teamwork is a necessity for success in business, but don’t be the bat boy. Become a leader. Set goals and accomplish them. Create the art you’ve always wanted to. Quit setting it aside because you feel it’s safer to be mediocre…that the professional and master painters or photographers are untouchable. They’re not! Increase your knowledge, prioritize your time, and give it all you’ve got to see yourself excel.
Resume-Building Mindset
Unfortunately, we do live with a resume-building mindset. So eager to work somewhere to add it to our list of achievements for the hopes of landing that big job with a dream employer. You can add your resume to the stack of other faceless resumes, or you can choose another option. To go out there and create a ruckus. Find what you’re passionate about and go after it…blog it, paint it, sculpt it, photograph it, design it, sing it…create a body of work so remarkable that people will take notice. Your work will inevitably speak for itself. No need for resumes.
