AUTISM SOLUTIONS
the questions you need to take your life to the next
level. For example, there was a young man in college
who was afraid to go to his professor to ask for help.
This young man, however, liked Marvel Comics, and
the X-Men are part of Marvel Comics. This man was
told, “Pretend you’re an X-Man and that you’re going
to see Professor Xavier for help.” His face lit up in-
stantly, and he mustered up the confidence and the
courage to go and get the help he needed. A great
deal of guidance can be found in studying superhe-
roes and other characters in movies, TV shows, etc.
that are on a journey to accomplish something big-
ger and greater than themselves and who must help
themselves overcome their internal conflicts before
they can help others.
Batman, for example, may only be one man, but he
constantly and consistently puts in the work to gain
more knowledge, make himself stronger, and adapt
to new situations to remain at least one step ahead
of his enemies. As a result, he is very effective and
creates a reputation for being a skilled crime fight-
er that makes a difference for the better in the lives
of others. Also, Batman has teammates, or “allies” as
they are called in Come to Life! Your Guide to Self-Dis-
covery, who help him accomplish his missions and
make a bigger difference. They also help him when
he feels down emotionally or experiences failure.
Bruce Wayne’s butler, Alfred, once asked him, “Why
do we fall?” The answer is, “So we can learn to pick
ourselves up.”
This is an example of being the hero in your life:
Knowing what you do well AND where you can im-
prove, accepting that once you love yourself, others
will love you in return, and that hearing what oth-
ers have to say so you can make the best decision
for yourself will help you see that getting out of your
comfort zone and embracing change rather than
avoiding it can be and often is good for you. You
don’t have to go through this journey alone. There
are p eople in your life who want you to succeed and
will help and guide you to get there. Similar to play-
ing “make-believe,” you can pretend you are a hero
on a journey to bigger, better things. See what hap-
pens when you apply this approach; you might be
amazed at the results.
It all starts with asking yourself, “Who’s my superhe-
ro?” More specifically, ask yourself, “Who do I look up
to?” or “Who do I want to be like?” Your superhero can
be a real person or a character, alive or dead. After
you have chosen your superhero, list the following
about him/her:
His/Her superpowers (what he/she does very
well)
His/Her mission (Why is he/she here?)
Special tools he/she uses (Batarangs and grap-
ple guns, in the case of Batman)
Allies your hero works with to get the job done
The hero’s weaknesses or things that distract
the hero from his/her mission
Finally, after looking at your answers to these items,
ask yourself, “How is my superhero a good role mod-
el for me?” In other words, what are the good things
that your hero does that you do or can do, too? Once
you get an idea of what your hero has going for him/
her, you can start to look at your skills, talents, and
people that care for you, and figure out what you
have going for yourself.
Lastly, remember a hero does not complete his/her
mission sitting at home feeling sorry for himself or
herself—a hero ventures out into the unknown with
his/her head held high ready to take on new chal-
lenges. It is crucial that you know that life doesn’t
come to you…it’s up to YOU to come to life! So, get
up, get out there, and see how you can be the hero
in your own life!
Website: www.thomasiland.com
Diagnosed with autism at 13
years old, Tom Iland, CPA, DTM,
has worked hard to achieve his
goals: learning to drive, living
on his own, graduating from
college, obtaining full-time em-
ployment, becoming a Distin-
guished Toastmaster (DTM), and
having a girlfriend. Tom recently
left his career as a certified public accountant (CPA)
to educate, inspire, and motivate people affected by
autism. His mantra “Know Yourself. Love Yourself.
Be Yourself.” has been featured in keynote speech-
es and is among the topics in his Amazon #1 Best-
seller book, Come to Life! Your Guide to Self-Discov-
ery. Tom currently lives in Santa Clarita, California,
with his dog, Bridget.
Autism Parenting Magazine | Issue 72 |
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