When you think about Star Wars, Harry Potter, and The Hunger Games, you might first notice how different their main characters are. Luke Skywalker is a farm boy from a galaxy far, far away. Harry is a young wizard raised by non-magical relatives. Katniss Everdeen is a teenage survivalist thrust into a deadly competition.
But despite their differences, all three characters follow a familiar path – one that Joseph Campbell called The Hero’s Journey. So, what is “The Hero’s Journey”?
What Is the Hero’s Journey?
The Hero’s Journey is a story pattern found in myths, fables, and legends across cultures and centuries. It was first outlined in depth by Joseph Campbell in his 1949 book The Hero with a Thousand Faces. This narrative arc includes stages such as:
In each case, the hero is pushed out of their comfort zone, forced to grow, and ultimately returns changed by the experience.
A Short Video That Explains It Beautifully
If you’re not familiar with the Hero’s Journey, or you want a refresher, I recommend watching this short animated video narrated by Matthew Winkler. It explains the entire journey in just four minutes using well-known examples from books and movies.
This video highlights the universal pattern behind many of our favorite stories and shows how it continues to resonate today. You will see that this “Journey” can apply to all of us!
How This Applies to You
You don’t have to be a Jedi, a wizard, or a dystopian survivor to go on a Hero’s Journey.
In fact, if you’re an entrepreneur – especially one building your own online business – you’re already on that path.
As entrepreneurs, we are all going on our own “Hero’s Journey,” conquering our monsters and pushing forth into territory that is unknown to us. Building an online business can sometimes feel like this, especially when everything is new and you’re trying to figure out the next step on your journey.
The first time you decide to share your work with the world, build your website, or launch your own product or service, you’re stepping into unknown territory. You may have doubts. You may face challenges. But as you grow and learn, you become stronger, more capable, and more confident.
Why I Love This Message
This short video is a reminder that heroes aren’t just fictional characters. We all have the capacity to rise to challenges, conquer fears, and grow into something greater.
So whether you’re building a website, launching your first offer, or simply learning something new, you’re on your own version of the Hero’s Journey.
Your Turn To Take the Journey!
This little video above is also an excellent reminder that we, too, can be heroes by accepting challenges and conquering our fears in every aspect of our lives.
And if you’re ready to start your own journey by building your website, I invite you to join me in the Website Creation Workshop. It’s designed to help you take those brave first steps and guide you through the entire process.
And you, too, can go on the hero’s journey with me and build your own website in the Website Creation Workshop! Let’s go on this journey together.
Hi Christina,
Thanks for sharing — I’ve being hearing about Joseph Campbell and the Hero’s Journey for years without stopping to look into it. This video is a great explanation and summary! I’m not quite sure if Star Wars fits the pattern as clearly as Harry Potter or Narnia where the return from the “special world” of magic adventure to the status quo “ordinary world” (of Muggles) is clearly shown.
For sure, the Hero’s Journey is an inspirational metaphor for the adventure of the creative entrepreneur – where with “assistance” we can overcome “trials” and “crisis” – and get to “treasure”, “result” and “new life”.
What a fun way to describe the hero’s journey with the 12 steps around a clock.
We all have potential to be a hero – it’s waiting to be activated.
Virginia: yes that’s what so exciting! we all have that hero inside of us 🙂
I first read the Hero’s Journey by Joseph Campbell way back in the ’80’s! I then began to explore more deeply the world as he described it and came to realize that I was in many ways already living a life based on my intuition. I am highly intuitive and make most of my decisions first by studying the “facts” and analyzing whether or not they are relevant in my life and then doing what Jung called “active imagination”, which is highly intuitive. Most of the time, this works well for me, when it doesn’t, well, it just doesn’t…. life is like that; however, what this has done for me, personally, is to prepare me for difficult times and challenging situations. Just because I am inclined to do something based on intuition, it does not guarantee the road will be free of obstacles and challenges.
Linda,
Thanks so much for sharing your experience with Joseph Campbell’s book! Sometimes our intuition will tell us to take a bumpy road, cause that is what we need 🙂
Thank you for sharing this! I see it fitting the entrepreneur’s journey so clearly, and watching it made me feel my dream bubbling inside me even more so. I also see this as a wonderful share with clients, because as they face their needed transformation (I am a Functional Health Coach). They need the courage and drive to become their own hero! It takes a tremendous amount of courage to truly take on ‘leaving’ old familiar habits behind and fight their way through to new habits that become the established new normal for them, and a much better place in life! I think I will be looking this up on YouTube and imbedding it on my new site. I am so very much enjoying your Website Creation Class, and I’m so grateful that you happened across my ‘hero’s path’ just at the right time. Here in the ‘valley of the struggle’ it’s great to have supporters helping me!!! 🙂
Carol,
So glad you can relate to the video, and I’m so glad you are enjoying the Website Creation Workshop! Yes, we need to learn to leave behind old habits and old ways of thinking and get empowered. It feels great once you do! 🙂