Remember the movie Labyrinth? It was made in 1986 and starred David Bowie in all his eye-shadowed glory, a 14-year-old Jennifer Connelly and a stack of Jim Henson’s most decadent muppets. When I was young, I was caught up in the story of a goblin king who steals a teenage girl’s baby brother. However, recently watching this now cult classic again as an adult, I saw something new … five striking themes that apply to your small business or corporate career.
1. Be careful what you wish for
A careless wish changes the life of Connelly’s character, Sarah, forever … she wishes goblins would steal away her baby brother. Of course, she doesn’t really want Toby to disappear and spends the rest of the movie rescuing him. In actual fact, she just selfishly wants to shrug off her responsibility as an older sister. How often do we wish our responsibilities as small business owners or managers would disappear, especially those that cry and scream for attention? Sometimes, of course, we’re overwhelmed and need help. Other times, though, the problem is our attitude — we’re simply looking for the easy way out. Facing our flaws is obviously difficult … it takes maturity to look in the mirror and question ourselves. What do you need take a closer look at in your professional life.
2. Things are not always as they seem
The labyrinth is a long, straight passage way with only what’s forward and what’s behind. At least, that’s what Sarah thinks until a tiny, talking worm points out perception creates this illusion. As soon as Sarah looks at this fantasy world with fresh eyes, gaps and doors magically open in the seemingly endless stone walls. This is called “thinking outside the square” and it’s essentially about finding new ways to overcome old problems. Start by:
- Challenging conventional solutions and assumptions
- Grabbing some coloured pens and drawing a web of ideas as they come to mind, even if they seem crazy. This is called “mind mapping” and it apparently unlocks your creative thought processes.
3. Life is unfair
“That’s not fair,” Sarah so often whines, even though the way she behaves can often hardly be called fair. “You say that so often,” mocks Jareth the goblin king, played by Bowie. “I wonder what your basis for comparison is.” He makes a good point — what are our problems compared with the other 7 billion people in the world, including the 3 billion trying to live on less than US$2.50 a day. Issues of poverty and wealth aside, life is intrinsically unfair and part of being a mature adult is accepting this. Unfortunately, contrary to what we learn at school and in fairy tales, goodies don’t always win and baddies don’t always lose. Inevitably, we’ll be out-witted, cheated, back-stabbed or generally done wrong … and it will happen many times. Accepting that life isn’t fair is surprisingly liberating — you don’t need to ask “what if” or feel quite so emotionally gutted. It just happens, so reacting with dignity and professionalism, and choosing to move on become our priorities.
4. Big, scary monsters are often illusions
Sarah encounters three terrifying monsters in her quest to navigate the labyrinth and save her baby brother. She rescues one from cruel goblins, who have the giant ginger-haired beast strung by the ankles from a tree. At first, with his horns, fangs and mammoth frame, Ludo seems terrifying. However, he turns out to be a gentle giant, who becomes a friend and saves the day more than once. The other two monsters are mechanical. One is “the cleaners”, a metal ball with claws that rumbles through labyrinth tunnels, squashing everything in its path. The other wields a double-edged axe to protect the gates to the goblin king’s castle. However, on closer inspection, these two monsters are simply machines controlled by tiny muppets. How many “monsters” in our own lives could become powerful allies with a little kindness or are all surface with no real substance?
5. Friendships are complex
The Labyrinth is a film in which even the best of friends play dirty. Sarah bribes then blackmails her closest ally, Hoggle, the muppet gatekeeper of the labyrinth. In return, he is torn between his loyalty to her and his instruction from the goblin king to thwart her quest. I struggle with such an easy acceptance of deceit in friendships, but perhaps it reflects the flawed reality of human relationships. I certainly don’t think we should use or manipulate people to get ahead in our businesses or careers. However, I do wonder if we need to recognise that working friendships are sometimes compromised, whether easily or under external pressure. What should be our response? Slowness to condemn or willingness to understand and forgive? What do you think?
