Activate Your Inner Superhero: A Coaching Lens on the Hero’s Journey

Marie-Pier Duchesne
May 6
6 min read

Are you as obsessed as I am with superheroes? The call to adventure. The selflessness. The righteousness. The will to take action and be the saviour to all. The impossible love scenes. The happy ending.

It’s not just about the fight scenes or special effects.

It’s something deeper. Something primal.

We watch these stories—over and over—because they remind us of something we know, even if we’ve forgotten:

We’re on a hero’s journey too.

Every transformation we go through—especially the ones that shake us, crack us open, or make us question everything—is a portal into our own becoming.

As a coach, I see it all the time. The woman who gave her all to motherhood and forgot herself. The leader who hit all the external milestones but feels disconnected inside. The soul who’s whispering, “There must be more.”

This is your origin story. And I want to show you how to see it through the eyes of your inner superhero.

The Hero’s Journey Is Already Happening Within You

Every great superhero story follows a familiar arc:

A call to adventure
Initial resistance or fear
Trials, allies, and mentors
A moment of deep challenge or near-defeat
A transformation or rebirth
And finally, a return—with wisdom and power to share

Sound familiar?

This isn’t just myth. It’s a map.

That call to adventure in a movie might look like a wise old sorcerer appearing out of nowhere, offering the main character an impossible mission. Or maybe a tragic event disrupts their ordinary world and pushes them into action.

In real life, the call isn’t always so cinematic. It might be a quiet nudge in the gut, a late-night thought you can’t shake, a growing sense of “this isn’t it.” It could be a burnout, a breakup, a baby, a diagnosis—or just a moment when the life you built no longer fits the version of you that’s awakening. The invitation is the same: step into the unknown, and trust there’s more on the other side.

You might be in the “messy middle” right now. The part where everything feels uncertain or overwhelming. But that doesn’t mean you’re broken. It means you’re becoming.

Reflection: Where are you right now in your journey? Are you hearing the call? Are you facing resistance? Or rising into your power?

Superheroes Don’t Wait for Certainty

One of the most powerful things about our favourite action characters is this: They don’t know how things will end. But they act anyway.

They trust their mission, their instincts, their truth—even when the path is unclear.

That’s real faith. Not the absence of doubt, but the willingness to keep going anyway.

Superheroes feel fear too. The difference is, they don’t let fear run the show. What drives them isn’t the absence of fear—it’s the clarity of their mission. They might hesitate, doubt, or even want to walk away, but they’re deeply aligned with something greater than the fear: purpose.

In real life, this looks like choosing to listen to the heart—even when the mind is spiraling with what-ifs. It takes courage to pause and ask the right question: What would my aligned self do next? Not the perfect self. Not the fearless self. The aligned one. The one willing to step forward even when the path is blurry. That’s where true strength lives—in the willingness to keep going, not in knowing all the answers.

As a coach, I often say: confidence comes from action. You need connection. To your purpose. Your body. Your soul.

Try this: Put your hand on your heart and ask, “What is my next right step?” That’s enough. That’s your superpower today.

Presence Is Power

Watch any action scene and notice this: The hero isn’t overthinking. They’re in their body. In their breath. In the moment.

That’s not just for fiction—it’s a truth we often forget in modern life.

We crave presence—deeply. It’s why we can’t look away during an intense action scene. The hero isn’t multitasking or overanalyzing. They’re in it. Fully embodied, senses sharp, breath steady, completely alive in the moment. That kind of presence is magnetic. It reminds us of what’s possible when we stop overthinking and start trusting our inner knowing. Ironically, in so many movies, the hero loses their power the moment they start questioning it—when they try to understand the how instead of feeling the truth of it. Real power lives in the body, not the mind. And it’s when the hero drops back into the being, into the feeling, that they find flow.

That’s not fiction—that’s a mirror. Your power is in your presence, too.

Embodiment is a superpower. Being fully present—especially when things feel uncertain—is what allows transformation to move through you.

Coaching Tip: Movement. Breath. Grounding. These are not luxuries—they’re how you access your power. Stop overthinking. Start feeling.

The Breaking Point Is the Becoming Point

Every superhero has a moment where they want to give up. They question everything. They doubt themselves.

And every single time, something—or someone—reminds them who they are.

If you’re there right now… take a deep breath.

In movies, the breaking point is often a dramatic moment—a fall from grace, a betrayal, a near-death experience—and it’s crystal clear that the hero has reached rock bottom. But in real life? It’s rarely that obvious. The unraveling can be slow, quiet, and spread over months or even years. It can look like going through the motions, losing your spark, questioning everything, or feeling like you don’t recognize yourself anymore.

This phase isn’t just about breaking down—it’s about remembering who you are. As Zach Bush beautifully explains, every cell in your body holds a memory of your true identity. Beneath the confusion, there is a deep knowing waiting to be reawakened. Reconnecting to it isn’t always loud or dramatic—it’s a gentle process of listening, healing, and allowing yourself to become again. The work is inner. It’s spiritual. And it’s what leads to the most powerful kind of return.

This isn’t the end. It’s the inflection point. You are not alone, and you are not failing.

You’re about to rise.

Remember: Doubt doesn’t mean you’re off-path. It means you’re close to the breakthrough.

Reclaiming Your Identity Is the Real Plot Twist

Clark Kent was always Superman. Diana was always Wonder Woman.They just had to remember.

Most of us have forgotten who we are because we’ve been wearing roles, masks, and expectations.

One of the most fascinating parts of any superhero story is the identity question. Who is the mask? Is it the one they wear at night, or the one they take off during the day? Which version is real? Which one holds the truth? And the answer—just like in life—is that both are real. The true power doesn’t come from choosing one identity over the other, but from integrating them.

Reclaiming your identity isn’t about going back to who you were before it all changed. It’s about becoming the fullest expression of who you are now—made up of all the versions you’ve ever been. The healer and the warrior. The mother and the seeker. The soft and the fierce. The mask and the face beneath it.

That’s the real plot twist: not hiding, not choosing, but embracing all of you as one powerful, aligned, fully embodied being.

Coaching is the process of peeling back those layers and coming home to the truth: You were never “not enough.” You were just disconnected from your essence.