Lessons from My Hero Academia: Be the hero of your own story
This article was originally posted on my personal website.
As someone who loves to learn about stories from films and series, I mostly watch Westerns and some Indonesian. Lately, I’ve been delving into the world of Anime, the famous Japanese 2D art. Of course, I’ve had my watch on legendary shows like Naruto, Avatar: The Legend of Aang, or Captain Tsubasa, when I was little. Not until two years ago that I started watching Anime again as my friends were huge fans of Attack on Titan and My Hero Academia.
Long story short, I’d been bouncing from series to series: Attack on Titan, Demon Slayer, The Promised Neverland, Hunter x Hunter. I got so curious about My Hero Academia but I had a hard time finding resources as the first season wasn’t on Netflix. But once I was done, I continued until the early fifth season.
After watching a couple of series, I realised that a lot of them have something in common: The main character has a solid goal. Eren Jaeger wants revenge, Tanjiro Kamado wants to save his sister, Gon Freecs wants to be a Hunter, and Midoriya Izuku wants to be a Hero. Sure, they are all ambitious, to the point that it was inspiring. At least for me, it was almost compelling to be as determined as them.
Stay focused and work hard, despite born-talent
As Shoto Todoroki once said: “If you wanna stop this, then stand up! Because I’ve got one thing to say to you. Never forget who you want to become!”
The more I continued watching the series, the more I noticed how persistent the characters are. In reality, it is so easy to lose sight of who we want to become. We are surrounded by huge amounts of information, we are exposed to various perspectives, and it’s only natural to work harder to stay true and to achieve.
In modern society, when it comes to our identity, we tend to associate it with the things we possess and the circle we’re in. When we’re stripped of that, we lose. Why? We lack a sense of ourselves — who we are, what we want — we have been constructed by the so-called ‘social norms’ that sometimes we find it hard to listen to our inner voice.
Working hard means showing up, being consistent, and pushing through despite all the obstacles we’re facing. It doesn’t matter how talented we were when we were born. When we lose sight of ourselves, we walk on eggshells. We float away in the midst of overloaded information.
Know when to push and to halt, you’re playing a long game
When it comes to superheroes, it’s clearly distinguishable by physical and mental strength. Have you ever seen such superhumans getting sick over some flu or the pandemic? Barely. On that note, once those ‘limiting’ variables are taken care of, what’s stopping you now?
All Might once said: “If you feel yourself hitting up against your limit, remember for what cause you clench your fists! Remember why you started down this path, and let that memory carry you beyond your limit.”
A trip down memory lane — be it a medium of a picture, a video, a letter, etc — may help us throughout the process of breaking those limiting beliefs. When we’ve reached a plateau, it can be extremely hard to find ways to get past it. As author James Clear recommends when building a habit, we need to stick one’s identity to that particular thing we want to achieve.
Want to be a healthy person? Then act like one. Get enough sleep, eat nutritious meals, exercise daily, it all follows the identity of being a healthy person. The trick is to make the things you do daily bearable and sustainable in the long run.
Give it all out, or none at all
In one of the episodes, Eraserhead said, “There’s nothing crueller than letting a dream end midway.” Then Shinso Hitoshi added, “You can’t help the things you long for.” When it comes down to your goal, ask yourself:
Do you truly want to achieve it?
It’s common to label failure as “Oh, I’m not getting this opportunity, am I really that bad?” Sure, but what if things don’t work out for you because you’re not sure if you want it real bad? When you don’t give it 100%, why should the universe grant you more?
“They’ve been exposed to the outside world, up close and personal. They’ve had that fear planted in them. And they’ve endured it. Overcome it. Each has grown from that experience. And forgotten how to hesitate.” — Eraserhead
Vulnerability goes a long way
Midoriya is emotionally vulnerable while Bakugo suppresses his feelings. Midoriya cries when he needs to and processes emotion freely; Bakugo translates his insecurities and fears into violence and anger.
Bakugo plays an important character because we see his development throughout the series. He also teaches others to remember the pain they’ve caused. Being a better person — being a hero — takes constant, ongoing, lifetime work.
“Whether you win or lose, looking back and learning from your experience is a part of life.” — All Might
Choose your fighter(s)
The series showcases many kinds of heroes with their unique Quirks (superpowers). It is intriguing to view how the creator of the story opts to highlight acts of kindness. They show how there is no one-size-fits-all, each of the Quirks is useful — even in the most bizarre situations.
In real life, it makes me rethink. How might we utilise what we currently have, in terms of tools and skill sets, to move forward and wing it? Before we talk about the how, we first need to identify our toolboxes, our fighters. Lay them out where you can see them, name them, categorize them, see how one another intersects. Finally, use them accordingly to the situation.
You can be the motivator. You can be the executor. You can play one of your six thinking hats. You can choose, only as long as you have them.
Listen to your body — gut, instincts
Heroism in My Hero Academia is the reflex to protect — putting yourself last and living for others. Bakugo closes out this chapter with his sacrifice and the words: “At that moment, there were no thoughts in my head. My body just moved on its own.”
When faced with danger and fear, our body tends to give a strong signal. Sometimes, we would take notes and listen to it. However, when faced with something less obvious, we always try not to acknowledge it. Why?
As humans, we have the capability to think emotionally and rationally. One of them could be more dominant than the other. One is never more right and never more wrong. Yet when we have that gut, that instinct, we instantly know what to do. Be it a job offer, a new opportunity arise, it feels like our body just runs towards it. Have you ever felt it?
Epilogue
This was originally drafted in 2021, got carried away by some series, and decided not to publish it. However, looking back, this series is one of the most heartwarming and full of life lessons. I’m grateful to have discovered it, and I hope you readers find something useful to take away.
Let me know your thoughts, would love to learn back from you.
Stay healthy, strong, and young!
P.S. I haven’t seen the latest season of My Hero Academia and more of the series I mentioned, no spoilers please! :D
