ClicksyPicsWiggle animations and more!

Some of the videos I’ve watched online lately focus on what people wanted to be when they were kids, and how most of us don’t strive for that once we reach adulthood.  We’re happy with our 9 to 5, especially if that 9 to 5 includes a cause.  Or we’re unhappy, but we live life for the weekends.  But what most of us don’t do is strive for something more.  We’re convinced we have these major limitations and believe it’s crazy to think we can do something big.

These videos encouraged me to start thinking about who and what I wanted to be when I was a kid.  My superstars were 80′s pop singers: Madonna, Cindy Lauper, Michael Jackson.  I wanted to be a superstar, because superstars had the power to change the world.  As I reached my teens, I wasn’t so impressed with singers and pop stars.  I started learning more about scholars.  Later, the Internet came about.  That’s when I met my real superstars.  Below are a few examples as well as some fantastic and inspiring videos.

Remember the Numa kid?  Here’s this single moment in time, when a kid let his real personality show through.  In doing so, he helped change the world a little.  Though he was embarrassed at the time, people shared it, people made hilarious adaptations, but most importantly, people laughed.  I think one of the main reasons this video went viral was because it helped many of us see the Numa kid inside ourselves.  That goofy, childlike self that rests just below the surface.  That part of us we tend to hide.  But… maybe we shouldn’t.  He’s one of my superstars.

Some of my biggest superstars as an adult are everyday people who’ve shared their private lives and thoughts.  For instance, American Pickers.  Here’s a show about two everyday guys who go around ‘picking’, with help from Danielle.  They find people with gobs of junk, go meet them, and try to buy some of it to resell.  That’s pretty fun, but that’s not what makes them my superstars.  I like them because of those spontaneous moments that show us who they really are as people, they come off as genuine.  The stupid conversations the guys have in the van.  The goofy jokes.  The excitement they have when they find a particularly valuable piece of junk.  Sure, they make asses out of themselves on a regular basis.  But in private, so do most of us.  They just have the guts to share it.  I know a lot of the show is staged.  When they ‘spontaneously’ go up to someone’s door, and that person is dressed up nice with gobs of makeup, it’s kind of a tip-off.   But it doesn’t take anything away from my appreciation of the genuine reactions they have in the show.  Clean House is another one, they can be so predictable but it doesn’t make it any less funny.

But goofy and genuine aren’t my only criteria required to be grouped into the category of my superstars.  I also appreciate people who don’t let their limitations hold them back.  Stephen Hawking is a good example.  Here’s a fellow who can’t talk, can’t walk, can’t even scratch an itch.  But he’s considered to be one of the smartest men of our time.  He writes books, he teaches, he doesn’t let his limitations stop him from doing what he wanted to do in life.  He worked around them, he didn’t give up.

I wanted to share this because so many of us go through life hiding.  We don’t believe we can change the world.  If we’re shy and don’t trust people enough to show them who we really are, we’ll never change the world.  The Internet has given us a medium where we can all be superstars.  I hope this encourages you to share your true self and think about what and who you really want to be.  Whether it’s at home, at work, or on the internet,  with enough of us working together, I think we can make this world a better place.  Even if it’s just our little corner of it.

What did you want to be when you grew up? Who are your superstars?

RELATED RESOURCES:

Randy Pausch: Really achieving your childhood dreams (video below) via TED Talks:  In 2007, Carnegie Mellon professor Randy Pausch, who was dying of pancreatic cancer, delivered a one-of-a-kind last lecture that made the world stop and pay attention. This moving talk will teach you how to really achieve your childhood dreams. Unmissable.

Amy Purdy: Living beyond limits (video below), via TED Talks:  When she was 19, Amy Purdy lost both her legs below the knee. And now … she’s a pro snowboarder. In this powerful talk, she shows us how to draw inspiration from life’s obstacles.

Gary Vaynerchuk: Do what you love (no excuses!) (video below, NSFW, mild language) via TED Talks:  At the Web 2.0 Expo, entrepreneur Gary Vaynerchuk gives a shot in the arm to dreamers and up-and-comers who face self-doubt. The Internet has made the formula for success simpler than ever, he argues. So there’s now no excuse not to do what makes you happy.

Modeling with Acne (video below):  A girl overcomes her biggest insecurity to help others in this fantastic viral video

The Numa Kid:  The “digitally remastered” version… I like the original better, seems like the sound is off, it’s more like de-mastered.  Here’s a little background on Gary Brolsma from Wikipedia.

Stephen Hawking:  Here’s his wiki page.  If you have Netflix, I encourage you to search for his name and check out his show, Into the Universe.

American Pickers:  Watch the show here.  Find some background on Mike and the store here.

Clean House: Find more info on Clean House and Niecy Nash here.