Today marks the first day of the rest of your supertraining.

The world has waited long enough for you to accept that you’re a superhero.

But it can’t wait any longer. As Peter Parker’s uncle said, “With great power comes great responsibility.”

So let’s get started.

First, as a sensitive superhero, you should know that your sensitivity is your greatest strength. You may have thought it was a weakness because people have told you your whole life that you need to “stop being so sensitive” and “toughen up.” But the truth is Peter was also taunted and criticized for his incredible smarts and that was his greatest ally when he finally became Spider-Man.

So the first lesson in your superhero training: Embrace your inherent traits and use them to help you do good.

Here are four of your strongest superpower traits and how to supercharge them:
 
 

1. Emotional X-ray vision

Because you can see through pretenses and get to the core of what people are truly feeling, you’re able to understand what drives them to act the way they do. To supercharge this, the next time someone does something hurtful or inappropriate, look deeper into their root emotions and direct your attention to the pain driving their action, rather than the action itself. This doesn’t excuse their behavior, it allows you to empathize with their pain and work with the real problem to get real results.

2. Emotional absorption

Because you have the ability to take in and feel someone else’s emotions as if they were your own, you’re able to process their pain in a way that transmutes it for them. To supercharge this, the next time you walk by someone who’s feeling sad (you’ll know because you’ll feel a wave of sadness wash over you for no apparent reason) consciously take in a deep breath, as if inhaling their sadness. Then imagine the sadness being filtered through an invisible emotion filtration device in your body (you’re a superhero, remember? Superheroes have invisible devices after all. Wonder Woman’s invisible plane, anyone?). Finally, it flows out through your exhale, transmuted as peace. They may not know what just happened, but they’ll feel a bit lighter and more able to cope.

3. Holographic perspective

Because you have the multi-angled vision to see various perspectives, you’re able to bring peace and understanding to conflict. To supercharge this, the next time you’re in a heated debate, whether it’s your own or someone else’s, stop talking and start listening. Whether you agree with the other person’s perspective or not, you can validate their right to their own opinion by simply listening without judgment. There can be no argument if there’s no one to argue with and no drama if there’s no one to dramatize with. Usually, once a person feels that they’re understood and accepted, they’re more open to understanding and accepting the other person’s perspective and only then can conflict transform into true communication and connection.

4. Multi-dimensional consciousness

Because you’re open and sensitive to otherworldly dimensions beyond the physical time/space continuum, you inherently know that there’s more to life than what the eyes can see and what society dictates. To supercharge this, the next time you’re working, whether you fix cars for a living, make frappuccinos or paint masterpieces, be aware that the work you’re doing has purpose beyond what the brain knows. Treat your work as if it was divinely chosen and let your actions become a mindful practice for embracing the unseen and trusting the unknown. After all, Superman never complains that he’s stuck in a low end job at the Daily Planet. He sees beyond temporary appearances and superficial titles and knows his true value in the world.

 
 
As with all superheroes, the more you use and practice your superpowers, the stronger they become. And like all superheroes, learning to fly takes time. You may stumble and fall while you’re developing your sensitive super strengths, but eventually, with persistent practice, you’ll be soaring alongside the best of them.

See you in the sky!

 

 

 

 

Author: Tree Franklyn

Image: manhhai at Flickr

Editor: Renée Picard