Supergirl, based on the graphic novel: Supergirl: Woman Of Tomorrow, flew into theaters this past weekend. Sadly for her, the film hasn’t fared well with reviewers or fans. But that doesn’t mean it’s a bad movie. I, for one, really enjoyed the film.
Supergirl is Kara Zor-El (Milly Alcock). She was sent to Earth by her parents, Zor-El (David Krumholtz) and Alura Zor-El (Emily Beecham), to avoid the destruction of her home planet, Krypton. They also wanted her to take refuge with her cousin, Superman/Kal-El (David Corenswet).
Their intentions were kinder than Kal-El’s parents’. In the recent Superman film, we discover that Superman’s parents wanted him to rule over the people of the Earth. Her parents wanted her to help those who couldn’t defend themselves.
Her mission was to be good on Earth. Starkly different.
And that’s the strange thing. We see Supergirl stumbling through her life. She’s angry, sad, lonely.
Yet, we see a change in Supergirl as the film progresses. She finds purpose and meaning. She chooses to be good.
Join us as we explore Supergirl’s journey and how her story can help us become better leaders.
Quotes And Leadership Lessons From Supergirl
1. You can still care for people who make mistakes:
We see Krypto the Superdog misbehaving on multiple occasions. He pees on a newspaper of Superman but he goes over the paper. Then he knocks Supergirl over the couch.
Some would say Krypto was a menace. He continuously got into trouble.
Do you know who it didn’t matter to? Supergirl.
When Krypto needed help, she jumped in to help him. She put her life at risk to obtain the cure from the film’s villain, Krem (Matthias Schoenaerts).
No matter what Krypto did, Supergirl cared.
You can do the same for your people. You can empathize and feel concern for your people…
Regardless of what they do or how they act.
Care for your people, even the bad employees. They need your care to become better.
2. Bad leaders don’t keep their word:
Krem approaches a husband-and-wife couple, Elias Knoll (Ferdinand Kingsley) and Delilah Knoll (Emily Piggford). Elias was an expert swordsmith. That’s what Krem was after.
He told Elias and Delilah that he would leave their family alone if they gave him what he wanted. Elias began to, then his son, Emond (Bruce Lennox), runs.
Krem murders Emond. The word of the villain was not true.
Bad leaders are a lot like Krem. They will tell people one thing but do something completely different.
You may hear a leader promise to care for you, only to find them conniving behind your back. A leader may promise to give you something only to withhold it.
These are bad leaders. Beware of them.
When a leader can’t keep his word, it’s time for them, or you, to go.
3. Supergirl:
That’s so over the line of acceptable…
Ruthye (Eve Ridley), the Knoll’s daughter, walks into a bar. She’s looking for help in obtaining revenge against Krem.
She doesn’t have much to offer. But what she does have is something extremely valuable: One of her father’s handmade swords.
One of the aliens makes their move. He grabs the sword from Ruthye and flees.
Supergirl steps in. She confronts the alien. She tells him that his actions are unacceptable.
Sometimes, our team members may step out of line. It’s up to you to correct the negative behavior.
Be willing to step up to them. Tell them that they’ve crossed the line of acceptability.
If you don’t, who will?
4. Leaders can be injured and not know it:
Supergirl wakes up. There’s a bone dagger in her leg. She didn’t even notice the weapon.
However, as she pulls the dagger out, there’s an excruciating amount of pain.
But the key to this leadership point is that Supergirl didn’t even notice the injury to begin with.
We see this a lot in leadership. Leaders are told they need to push through the pain. So much so, the pain becomes normal. We don’t even register the pain.
Be careful if you find yourself not feeling anything. You may be injured and not even know it.
5. Supergirl:
Don’t freak out.
Supergirl puts a collar around Ruthye. She tells Ruthye not to freak out.
Then she pushes a button.
The collar had an expandable spacesuit that envelops the young girl. It was quick and painless. But it was freaky.
She tried to warn Ruthye before she did it. She had hoped she wouldn’t freak out.
Leaders need to be aware that their people may freak out by what’s happening around them. A lot of times, that’s because they’re left in the dark as to what is really happening.
Give your people advance notice before implementing major changes. Help them to see the reasons behind your actions.
The more you do to calm your people’s fears, the less they’ll freak out.
6. Alura Zor-El:
Just be good.
As Alura Zor-El is dying, she has something important to tell her daughter. She tells Kara/Supergirl to just be good.
Ooof, that’s powerful.
Her mother didn’t tell her to go be successful. To do great things. To be special.
No, her mother saw that it was critical that Kara be good.
Leaders, just be good. Leaders, just do good.
7. We can give advice even if we haven’t mastered it:
Ruthye was out for revenge. Supergirl knew seeking revenge wasn’t going to help.
This is cemented when Ruthye asks her when she stopped being angry.
Supergirl’s answer? Any day now.
She was still learning. Still growing.
Supergirl didn’t have it all together. But she knew what didn’t work.
We may be afraid to offer advice to those we lead when we haven’t mastered what we’re discussing. I want to encourage you to share what you have found to be true.
You don’t have to master it. You only need to know what works or doesn’t.
8. Some environments are not good for you:
Supergirl continues to seek out the antidote to Krypto’s poisoning. She goes off planet to a place where Krem might be.
When she steps off the ship, she has a hard time breathing. Then she falls over. She’s in extreme pain.
The planet has a green sun. It’s toxic to Kryptonians.
Guess what? Organizations can be toxic to you.
Be cautious of where you work. Of where you stay.
They could be toxic.
9. Supergirl:
It’s just a stupid suit, Ruthye. It doesn’t do anything.
Ruthye comes to Supergirl’s rescue on the green sun planet. She pulls her into a cave.
This is when Ruthye reveals that she had found Supergirl’s suit.
It was a kind gesture. However, Supergirl knows that it is just a suit. It’s not where her power comes from.
Your title is just a stupid title. Your influence doesn’t come from your title.
You influence others when you have impacted their lives. When you have shown them you’re a person of integrity.
Your title is great, sure… but it doesn’t do anything. It’s you who makes the impact.
10. Let your life be the example:
Ruthye wanted to kill Krem so badly. He took so much from her.
However, when Ruthye had the chance to kill Krem, Supergirl stepped in. She tells Ruthye to let her life be the revenge.
People may have thought you wouldn’t make a good leader. They may have thought you wouldn’t amount to much.
Don’t listen to them.
Instead, let your life be the example. Show them what you can accomplish.
