One of my favourite Disney movies?

Aladdin.

I’m not talking about the Will Smith re-make. That version can go swivel.

I’m talking about the original Aladdin.

As a kid, I’d burn through endless afternoons glued to the box while our trusty VHS player (remember those?) zipped Aladdin, Princess Jasmine and The Genie through Agrabah’s bustling streets.

Another character who deserves a mention?

The palace puppet-master Jafar.

On the surface, Jafar might come across as suave and respectable.

But beneath his silky robes, it’s a different story.

Throughout the movie, Jafar is consumed by fear that his carefully crafted image might crack and that his position as the Sultan’s advisor could be ripped away at any moment.

i.e. Jafar is really just a walking bundle of nerves.

That might sound odd for one of Disney’s most notorious supervillains. Most evil masterminds seem to have their shit together.

But the evidence is plain to see.

Jafar avoids even the slightest risk. For instance, instead of stepping into the Cave of Wonders to find the legendary lamp, he sends poor old Aladdin to do his dirty work.

Jafar has a bunch of coping mechanisms to get through each day – like his hypnotic cane which mesmerises & manipulates other people.

(a crutch in every sense of the word)

Jafar also uses his parrot Iago as a source of constant support, then berates Iago when he does support him. Cue the iconic line “trust me, my pungent friend, you’ll get what’s coming to you”.

Utterly blood-curdling!

Even when Jafar gets hold of the lamp – the very object he’s been seeking all along – he doubles down and keeps scheming to find more power.

Anyway, perhaps we all have a bit of Jafar in us.

A part of us which avoids taking risks, finds coping mechanisms and needs reassurance. All because we think catastrophe could strike at any moment.

A part of us which is, perhaps, Jafar-too-worried about what could happen that we forget about what is happening right now.

Which is why, in the fairy-tale event that Iago got what’s coming to him, had squawked his final tune and I was hired as Jafar’s new side-kick, I’d ask Jafar this:

How’s all this plotting and scheming working out for you?

Where do you think safety and security can be found?

And what if the real magic wasn’t in the lamp but was in you all along?

In fact, I’d ask similar questions to anyone who wanted to tap into their innate courage, clarity & calm.

In my experience, it’s questions like these which open the door to a life we truly love.

Speaking of which:

If you’d like to stop second-guessing yourself, quieten your fears and connect more with a calm sense of courage, hit reply.

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