The Severus Snape Phenomenon
Here’s the pitch:
What if you have understood the story of your life to include you (as the main character) seen through the lens of “not good enough” or “not smart enough” or “unworthy” or “weak” or (fill in the blank) when all of a sudden the lens changes? What if a simple perspective switch or the addition of a little more information changes the entire storyline?
I call this the Severus Snape Phenomenon. If you haven’t read the Harry Potter series or watched the movies, you won’t get the punchline. [The evolution in understanding Severus Snape is so good that I won’t ruin it for those who haven’t yet experienced it.] My point is that we can believe one thing for years because we have had limited information or a skewed perspective, and with one plot twist, our whole outlook transforms.
There are times when I have listened to someone’s story — ladened with shame and embarrassment upon telling. When I feed back that the main character (the storyteller) seems like a survivor, a fighter, a hero, a badass, and why I see it that way, everything changes. It is like the storyteller is hearing brand new information — never before considered.
The judgment, doubt, eviscerating self-criticism function to blind so many of us to the idea that we are the heroes of our own stories. In my view, it isn’t the survival of an event in life as much as it is the survival of the accumulation of life itself— the chronic demoralizing disappointments and toxic interactions. It is surviving abuse, loneliness, and long-term hardship and not giving up. The problem is that we can begin to see ourselves as the villains in our stories when all along we are the ones who have sacrificed in the shadows without any glory.
I am suggesting that seeing yourself as badass is as simple as taking a step back and viewing your story through different eyes. It is imagining hearing your story as if it were told by someone else. It is seeing or hearing alternate storylines that have gone unnoticed or unacknowledged. It is a re-examination of the facts.
The Severus Snape Phenomenon is understanding that if you look at your story through a different lens, you may actually find that you are a badass hero instead of the __________________ (fill in the blank) you’ve been telling yourself.
WHAT IF you’ve been the hero all along?
You could retort that there are many ways to view a story, and I would agree. My question is: If given the choice among perspectives, why would you choose the one where you are a scoundrel?
Want to know more about discovering your inner badass? Check out my new book, Badass Stories: Grit, Growth, Hope, and Healing in the Sh*tshow.
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