Mr. Mime is a jester-looking Pokémon that makes no sound. Like any good mime, it expresses itself entirely through movement and facial expressions. It’s one of the first 151—and therefore oldest—Pokémon. It is also a frequent guest in children’s nightmares around the world.
Compared to the cute animal-look of most other Pokémon, Mr. Mime is strangely human-like. His pink, white, and blue color scheme makes him appear ghostly, and his pointed-toe, medieval jester shoes don’t make him any more approachable either. As a child, I was creeped out every time he popped up on my Game Boy screen, and I’m not the only one: Even the world’s most popular Youtuber screams every time he catches a Mr. Mime in one of his packs.
Of course, like all Pokémon, Mr. Mime is friendly by nature. The guy’s not out to harm anybody. So if you discover him in, say, the game Pokémon Legends: Arceus, he’ll be casually hanging out, miming, going about his day. Mr. Mime’s attacks are telekinetic, and so is his defense. He’s famous for putting an invisible wall in front of him, which he then “touches,” teasing his opponent.
Sooner or later, however, the effect wanes, the barrier fades, and Mr. Mime starts moving again instead of just walking in place. In that particular game, you must find him in various spots around town, and as soon as you make it through an invisible maze to where Mr. Mime is putting up his barrier, he’s happy you have found him, drops his guard, and moves to the next location.
When I was younger, perhaps what creeped me out the most about Mr. Mime is that he always just seemed to stare into the void. It didn’t appear as if he was doing anything, and even when he was, he stayed in one spot, miming. Today, I realize Mr. Mime and his invisible walls are actually a great metaphor for life.
When you hit 100 subscribers on your newsletter in your first month, and then they instantly drop back down to 90, you know you’ve arrived. Welcome to the invisible wall. Of course, the wall could also be a plateau for your portfolio, a newfound stubbornness in your daughter you can’t explain, or a project at work that just won’t come together. Whatever it is, it’s frustrating. You know you’ll be here for a while, but you don’t want to be. This is where we can learn from Mr. Mime. He’d be happy to settle in.
The point of invisible walls is for you to feel them out until you find a weak spot. Sooner or later, they will break. Or fade. Or you’ll find a way around them. But until that happens? Just stay. Look. Touch. Observe. Make faces at it if you must, but do the one thing even I always had to give Mr. Mime credit for: he never ran away.
Don’t surrender to invisible walls.