Who is your hero?

If you ask this question typically you get a person named and a great story.  If you look at business’ actions, you typically conclude their business is the hero, here to swoop in and fix all your issues. “Calgon! Take me away!”

In human centered innovation, we get our priorities straight.  The hero of any story is a person and in business it is a person we serve.  That may be one of the most profound lessons I have learned through design thinking, and empathy in particular.  Brands, businesses, technological gadgets are not the heroes. They are the secret weapons, or little bit of help, that people appreciate as they live their heroic lives.  Joseph Campbell’s work on the Hero’s Journey is inspiring as you seek to shift your focus from your brand being the heroic solution to your shopper or consumer, or better said “the human you hope to serve”, as being your hero.

If you are not convinced, check out this blog by my colleague and the referenced research study that demonstrates it is better for a brand to help than to swoop in and save the day.

Cindy

Take Action

Stop acting as if your business is the hero in the story and start paying attention to the everyday, extraordinary lives of the heroes you are serving.  Consider, how can my business help them?