Superhero LegacyWoman is a real-life character says leadership expert Anthony Lopez

Leadership expert Anthony Lopez has dived into the world of superheroes, examining key characteristics that make a great leader and applying those to the leaders of the future in his new book The Legacy Leader as Superhero: LegacyWoman.

Anthony López, a sought-after expert on leadership and management topics, is the author of The Legacy Leader series of books as well as See You at the Wake: Healing Relationships before It’s Too Late and Jag: Christian Lessons from My Golden Retriever. He is the CEO and managing director of Azzur Group, a medical device and life-sciences services firm. He serves as chairman of the board for PROSPANICA (formerly the National Society of Hispanic MBAs), and is the founder of L&L Associates, a leadership and management consulting group.

Are leaders Superheroes?

When one thinks of a leader they may not first think of them as a “Superhero,” but that is exactly what Anthony Lopez came up with for the conception of his book The Legacy Leader as Superhero: LegacyWoman

“A true leader is like a superhero– visionary, truthful, loyal, courageous, anticipatory, and innovative. We need diverse leaders with great character and integrity who are able to create legacies through their leadership. What we need are LegacyWomen and LegacyMen because they embody the best qualities of all the best superheroes and channel al their energies towards one pursuit: to lead in a way that creates a legacy that we can be proud of,” concluded López. 

One may be familiar with the iconic superheroes of comics–Superman, Batman, Wonder-Woman, and Captain America. They all not only exhibit superhuman abilities, they also have extraordinary character traits that are admirable in any leader.

In the book, LEGACYWOMAN (and LEGACYMAN), represent the amalgamation of all the classic superheroes, merged together to create a new “real world” leader that possesses all the traits expected of the finest leaders.

For instance, Wonder-Woman’s iconic truth lasso is used to highlight the importance of truthfulness and credibility in leaders.  Superman’s vision relates to the need for a leader to be a visionary. Captain America examines the importance of loyalty, and on and on the book uses the lens of superheroes to identify admirable qualities in leaders.

However, unlike other superheroes, there is not just one LEGACYWOMAN. Anyone has the potential to be a LEGACYWOMAN. Lopez says, “We need an entire army of LEGACYWOMEN to lead in industry, government, communities, schools, and everywhere else.” 

Why a Woman Superhero or LegacyWoman?

When asked why a book about a Woman Superhero, Lopez says, “That’s easy. I have two daughters and a granddaughter and I want them to know that they can become LEGACYWOMEN themselves.”

Additionally he notes that throughout his career he has had the honor of mentoring and coaching many great professionals, “Among them many terrific women who were not always afforded the same advancement opportunities as their male counterparts.”

Because of this, Lopez says he has made it a personal priority to promote and champion women professionals in the workplace.

You might be interested: Anthony Lopez The Legacy Leader talks about female leadership

Lopez hopes the book will propel the right dialogue to continue about what we both expect and need from our leaders, and that we come to hold ourselves and our leaders to a higher standard of behavior and performance.

“I hope it sparks the imagination of people of all ages to aspire to become LEGACYWOMAN or LEGACYMAN the way I wanted to be Batman or Superman when I was a little boy,” Lopez shares. “And ultimately, I hope that it influences our leaders of today, and especially our leaders of tomorrow, to strive for greatness. I would want that to be my small contribution to the world.”