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Power Up: Leadership, Character, and Conflict Beyond the Superhero Multiverse
A multi-author exploration of contemporary challenges in leadership, team building, and conflict, through the lens of the superhero genre.
In the past decade, heroes and villains spawned from the pages of comic books have upended popular culture and revolutionized the entertainment industry. The narratives weave together a multitude of complementary and sometimes competing storylines, spun across decades, generations, and mediums, forming a complex tapestry that simultaneously captures the imagination and captivates the mind. These stories reveal our own vulnerabilities while casting an ideal to which we aspire. They pull at our deepest emotions and push us to the cusp of reality, and bring us back to Earth with a renewed hope of a better tomorrow. They are an endless source of powerful metaphors to help us learn and develop, then be the best versions of ourselves possible.
Through the lens of the superhero genre, each chapter explores contemporary challenges in leadership, team building, and conflict, while emphasizing the role of humanity and human nature in our own world.
Ian Boley, Jo Brick, Mitch Brian, Max Brooks, Mike Burke, Kelsey Cipolla, Amelia Cohen-Levy, Mick Cook, Jeff Drake, Clara Engle, Candice Frost, Ronald Granieri, PhD, Heather S, Gregg, PhD, James Groves, Geoff Harkness, PhD, Theresa Hitchens, Kayla Hodges, Cory Hollon, PhD, Joshua Huminski, Erica Iverson, Alyssa Jones, Mathew Klickstein, Jonathan Klug, Matt Lancaster, Steve Leonard, Karolyn McEwen, Eric Muirhead, Jon Niccum, Kera Rolsen, Mick Ryan, Julie Still, Patrick Sullivan, Aaron Rahsaan Thomas, Dan Ward, Janeen Webb, PhD.
In the past decade, heroes and villains spawned from the pages of comic books have upended popular culture and revolutionized the entertainment industry. The narratives weave together a multitude of complementary and sometimes competing storylines, spun across decades, generations, and mediums, forming a complex tapestry that simultaneously captures the imagination and captivates the mind. These stories reveal our own vulnerabilities while casting an ideal to which we aspire. They pull at our deepest emotions and push us to the cusp of reality, and bring us back to Earth with a renewed hope of a better tomorrow. They are an endless source of powerful metaphors to help us learn and develop, then be the best versions of ourselves possible.
Through the lens of the superhero genre, each chapter explores contemporary challenges in leadership, team building, and conflict, while emphasizing the role of humanity and human nature in our own world.
Ian Boley, Jo Brick, Mitch Brian, Max Brooks, Mike Burke, Kelsey Cipolla, Amelia Cohen-Levy, Mick Cook, Jeff Drake, Clara Engle, Candice Frost, Ronald Granieri, PhD, Heather S, Gregg, PhD, James Groves, Geoff Harkness, PhD, Theresa Hitchens, Kayla Hodges, Cory Hollon, PhD, Joshua Huminski, Erica Iverson, Alyssa Jones, Mathew Klickstein, Jonathan Klug, Matt Lancaster, Steve Leonard, Karolyn McEwen, Eric Muirhead, Jon Niccum, Kera Rolsen, Mick Ryan, Julie Still, Patrick Sullivan, Aaron Rahsaan Thomas, Dan Ward, Janeen Webb, PhD.
- GenresLeadership
459 pages, Kindle Edition
Published October 15, 2023
3 people are currently reading
23 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
December 19, 2023
Lesson Learned
A fun look at leadership principles and examples of conflict and opportunities from an unlikely source. Drawing on the popular myths of superhero’s the authors capture examples of character to imitate or avoid. For those that grew up reading comic books or watch the new DC and Marvel movies this is a great read.
A fun look at leadership principles and examples of conflict and opportunities from an unlikely source. Drawing on the popular myths of superhero’s the authors capture examples of character to imitate or avoid. For those that grew up reading comic books or watch the new DC and Marvel movies this is a great read.
December 30, 2023
I am a reluctant superhero fan. I arrived late to the genre, and I still don't know what's going on in most Marvel films. No matter - we all need a hero, and we all have a few lessons to learn - and you get a superhero sized dose of both through Power Up. A quality read for your favorite leader in either a civilian or military sector, a great read for a college grad, and a fun book to pick-up for those folks who do, actually, naturally enjoy the comic or supers genre.
Sometimes I struggle through compilations - when you fall in love, you want to keep going, so why play the field so? But in a world with many heroes and many stories, the different perspectives really helped bring the theme together, not tear it apart - and you're getting literally 35 experts for the price of one. You can't beat that value.
This book was made for me, because I got not just one - but at least two takes on the best super hero of all time - Squirrel Girl. And because it's a compilation, you get a lot of different perspectives and takeaways on topics ranging from coalition building and strategy to how to coax excellence from unexpected places and how to find your way back from monster to man.
Way too many amazing nuggets to include in a single review, but a few worth sharing:
"Ultimately, the thing that makes Squirrel Girl unbeatable is neither her power of girl nor her power of squirrel - it's the combination of the two, which expands the range of options she can draw from. As she explained to her squirrel companion, "That's the secret to being unbeatable Tippy; always have a Plan B."" -Dan Ward
"But Squirrel Girl shows you don't have to be dark and gritty to create change; in fact, leaning into positivity can often be a more effective solution - and a lot more fun." - Kelsey Cipolla
"Misfits carry a certain energy and have common traits. Those traits enable misfits to identify one another, and they can also be used by leaders to identify them. Of the many traits common to misfits - their passion, their courage (or recklessness), and their creativity - it is the most challenging to look beyond their tendency toward disruption." - Amelia Cohen-Levy
"The nexus of the solutions applied by Katniss and those of many superheroes comes in the moral decisions faced in the journey. In the good versus evil or right and wrong landscape set forth in both the science fiction world of Panem or that of Gotham City or Metropolis the heroine often achieves success but at great personal cost." Candice Frost
"People crave redemption. We need redemption to see the potential in others and ourselves. We need redemption to learn, to grow, to move beyond our mistakes. The redemption story offers a very relatable human story because it allows us to see ourselves through a different lens, to question ourselves and our decisions in life, and to have faith that we can become better versions of ourselves." - Steve Leonard
Sometimes I struggle through compilations - when you fall in love, you want to keep going, so why play the field so? But in a world with many heroes and many stories, the different perspectives really helped bring the theme together, not tear it apart - and you're getting literally 35 experts for the price of one. You can't beat that value.
This book was made for me, because I got not just one - but at least two takes on the best super hero of all time - Squirrel Girl. And because it's a compilation, you get a lot of different perspectives and takeaways on topics ranging from coalition building and strategy to how to coax excellence from unexpected places and how to find your way back from monster to man.
Way too many amazing nuggets to include in a single review, but a few worth sharing:
"Ultimately, the thing that makes Squirrel Girl unbeatable is neither her power of girl nor her power of squirrel - it's the combination of the two, which expands the range of options she can draw from. As she explained to her squirrel companion, "That's the secret to being unbeatable Tippy; always have a Plan B."" -Dan Ward
"But Squirrel Girl shows you don't have to be dark and gritty to create change; in fact, leaning into positivity can often be a more effective solution - and a lot more fun." - Kelsey Cipolla
"Misfits carry a certain energy and have common traits. Those traits enable misfits to identify one another, and they can also be used by leaders to identify them. Of the many traits common to misfits - their passion, their courage (or recklessness), and their creativity - it is the most challenging to look beyond their tendency toward disruption." - Amelia Cohen-Levy
"The nexus of the solutions applied by Katniss and those of many superheroes comes in the moral decisions faced in the journey. In the good versus evil or right and wrong landscape set forth in both the science fiction world of Panem or that of Gotham City or Metropolis the heroine often achieves success but at great personal cost." Candice Frost
"People crave redemption. We need redemption to see the potential in others and ourselves. We need redemption to learn, to grow, to move beyond our mistakes. The redemption story offers a very relatable human story because it allows us to see ourselves through a different lens, to question ourselves and our decisions in life, and to have faith that we can become better versions of ourselves." - Steve Leonard
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews