Despicable Me: 3 Reasons Being a Villain Doesn’t Pay
Are you a villain?
Maybe we all have a little villain inside of us. To one degree or another, we all want attention, power and respect and aren’t these the very things that villains strive so hard to get?
I’m not talking about the criminals you see on the evening news. I’m talking about movie villains. You know the ones that you see in animated flicks like Despicable Me.
These are the villains we are similar to. They have some wrong ideas and bad habits, but ultimately, deep down inside they aren’t really bad people. After all, we always find out that they have some qualities that make them redeemable. They can be saved from their villainous ways. Aren’t we the same?
Being a Villain: Where’s the Payoff?
Of course, we all know that being a villain at any level just doesn’t pay. It is not the path to living life to the fullest. It’s just commonsense. Or is it?
Villains always seem to believe that once they pull off their “big job” that they’ll finally get the attention, power and respect they want and deserve. In other words, they think it will make them happy.
Don’t we all want to be happy? I mean once we are sure our basic needs of food, shelter and safety are met, then from there isn’t the rest of what we do really about making ourselves happy? We pursue things like relationships, possessions and recognition which are all things we hope will fulfill us and give us a increased sense of well-being or happiness.
We set goals and focus our energy to achieve our objectives believing we are on the path to getting what we want. Often we have a series of goals that build up to some ultimate dream. In other words, we think that once we pull off our “big job”, whatever that may be, we’ll be happy. We think like villains.
For some, the “big job” might be getting promoted to a certain position, starting a business, saving the environment, attracting and marrying a mate or amassing a certain amount of money. Whatever “it” is, we too often reach these pinnacles of achievement only to find, like the villains, that they fail to accomplish what we really desire. They fail to make us happy.
3 Reasons Being a Villain Doesn’t Pay
You might have guessed by now that I recently took my daughters to see Despicable Me. I don’t think the trailers do it justice. I enjoyed it a lot more than I thought I would. It was pretty cute and I’d recommend going to see it.
In the movie, Gru is a villain that is getting a little older and seems to be starting to lose his edge. Younger, more creative, villains have come along pulling off braver and grander jobs than Gru. This doesn’t sit well with him so he does what any good villain would do. He devises an evil plan. He decides he is going redouble his efforts and steal the moon. This will prove he’s still got “it”.
Along the way, Gru “adopts” three cute little orphan girls to help him pull off his scheme. These little girls are your very typical pink-loving, fluffy-fufu junior females. They are not what you would typically think of as good sidekicks for a villain. However, they do teach Gru a few things about real happiness.
Here are the three reasons being a villain doesn’t pay from Despicable Me:
1. We Are Usually Confused About What We Want
Villains spend a lot of time, resources and energy pursuing the “big job”, but as we have already discussed it often fails to produce the fulfillment it was intended to produce. Gru thought that stealing the moon would get him the attention, power and respect he wanted, but he later discovered that other things were more important. Yes, he wanted someone to look up to him, but he found out it wasn’t other villains. It was three little girls.
2. The Real Cost of the “Big Job” Is Often Too High
As I said, pulling off a big job like stealing the moon takes a lot of time, energy and resources. It has a cost. We often fail to fully consider this cost. In Gru’s case, it almost cost him the relationship he developed with Margo, Edith and Agnes. This relationship certainly had its flaws, as is often the case, but it was worth a lot more to Gru than he realized. Villains seem to forever neglect what their “big job” will cost them. If the cost is too high, then the “big job” simply isn’t worth it.
3. Being a Villain Isolates Us from True Happiness Producers
As a villain, we often isolate ourselves physically and emotionally from the very things that are most likely to produce real happiness. As Gru discovered, being a villain is hard work and often requires a hard-nosed attitude. Also, there is an image to maintain. As a serious villain, you can’t go to dance recitals and have tea parties. There is tremendous pressure to stay focused. Villains have to insulate themselves. Again, the “big job” takes away more than it gives.
Maybe Villains Aren’t All They Are Cracked Up to Be
It is easy to want to be a villain. It appears to outsiders to be an attractive path to pursue. The “big job” is very alluring. It promises all the things our culture tells us we should want, but it leaves out a portion of the story.
My advice is to stop listening. Being a villain is not all it is cracked up to be. The big payoff usually isn’t there. Do your research. There are a lot of myths about happiness that you should debunk before you go down the wrong road.
Learn from the lessons taught in Despicable Me. Real happiness may be right under your nose and easier to obtain than you think.
Photo by Profound Whatever
Thanks for reminding me why I really DON’T want to be a villain
I work in the non-profit sector and with a lot of health and human service agencies, and it’s easy to feel burnt out doing “good” work all the time! But, it really is worth it when all I have to do is look around to see the real impact and happiness we create.
Joy from Just Plain Joy´s last blog ..Quote of the Day
Joy – “Good work” is often draining and it can seem like you never make any progress. After all, there is always someone in need. However, unlike superheroes, real folks can’t save everyone. This doesn’t mean that what you are doing doesn’t make a difference. Where would the world be without crusaders like yourself dedicating themselves to making their little corner of the world a better, more comfortable place for those down on their luck? We’d be in a mess, that’s where we’d be. My hat is off to you! Thanks for all you do.