Life Lessons From The Wizard of Oz

By Donna M. White, LMHC, CACP
So I’ve been on this old childhood movie kick lately and last night I watched the Wizard of Oz. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve watched this movie, but this time I decided to watch it from a “grown-up” perspective.

As the storyline goes, four strangers meet and set out on an adventure with a dog to be granted things they were wishing for, but already possessed.

The Scarecrow wanted brains, but throught the movie used common sense and ingenuity to get everyone out of various situations. The Tin Man wanted a heart but displayed sincere care and compassion to all. The Cowardly Lion put himself in harms way when Dorothy was captured by the Wicked Witch. And Dorothy? Well, she just wanted to go home and she was home the entire time – she just didn’t know because of a little bump on the head.

How many times do we wish for things we already possess? Maybe we need for someone to point them out. Perhaps, like the four strangers making their journey to Oz, we need to be placed in situation that makes us see what we have and our true potential.

This movie teaches us all to examine ourselves – to not be so quick to look to “The Wiz” for answers, but to find The Wiz within ourselves.

This movie also teaches us the value of surrounding ourselves with positive people who are like-minded. As different as they all were, they all had the same goal… to see The Wiz. Dorothy was somewhat naive, but determined. The scarecrow was flighty, yet resourceful. The Tin Man cried and rusted alot, and the Cowardly Lion was afraid and second guessed his actions. The fact remains that they stuck together. Without their common bond and loyalty to each other, they may have never made it to Oz.

Lastly, I think a lesson that can be taken away from this movie is to always be yourself. My absolute favorite scene in this movie is when the Wiz is exposed as a fraud and exclaims, “Pay no attention to the man behind the curtain!” When we try to be someone we are not, we are inevitably eventually exposed for who we really are.

Surround yourself with good people, find the Wiz within yourself, always be yourself, and pave your own yellow brick road and follow it!
Wicked witch hat and shoes photo available from Shutterstock