A Life Without Resolve

When you think about insanity, you are probably reminded of that overused quote from Albert Einstein that everyone seems to love to say, that "insanity is doing the same thing over and over expecting a different result." This may work in a purely scientific setting, but in every other case, it doesn't really apply, and when dealing with people, it's complete nonsense. If you try the same things over and over in a laboratory while using the identical ingredients in the same ratio, you will get the same results, but life is far from a science experiment. There are these crazy, little, constantly changing elements in this world called "people," who could react purely based on how they feel for that day, and no day, for them, is ever identical. With that said, even if you were to approach someone with an idea the same way, everyday (or at least the best you could,) they are not going to react exactly the same way every time. As a matter of fact, it would be completely ridiculous if they did. It would be like expecting someone to fall for the same joke every day, over and over again forever, just because you executed it the same way every time. No, people are not like controlled science experiments. They change their behaviors based around what they know and how they feel. They have these things called “memories” that let them make a new distinction they may not be aware of until they have been exposed to it multiple times. When experiences they've had are repeated, it slowly become more familiar to them; they become acquainted. Maybe a proposal you have shown somebody in the past failed because they were not yet familiar with you as a person. After all, the level of trust you have between a person tends to directly reflect how familiar that person is to you and seems to highly influence the way an interaction goes. Maybe a friend rejected an idea that you shared with them because it's completely different from what they already know. Some people aren't always open to a new idea if they don’t see that it has any merit. It's easy to miss the big picture when there are a lot of new concepts and principles presented to them all at once. It’s only after it’s been repeatedly introduced in someone’s mind that an idea will finally take up a piece of their mental real estate, and then seems reasonable. In this particular sense, doing the same thing over and over again is the only logical thing to do. The unsuccessful call this phenomenon insanity, but the successful call it persistence. Persistence is paramount for dreams to come true.

Les Brown, a motivational speaker who is the host to his own show, "The Les Brown Show," learned that sometimes you have to persist, even if the answer has always been "no," if you want to get what you want. When he was trying to lock down a job as a disc jockey in his younger years, he was rejected several times, with what most people would consider, a solid “no.” Les however, had a stronger desire to be a disc jockey than he did of looking stupid. His teacher, Mr. Washington, told him that he could do anything, but he had to be hungry. He told him to practice and be ready because it’s better to be prepared without an opportunity, then to have one and not be prepared. He worked on his skills at home and did everything he was told. Then, after he developed competence, he went to Miami Beach Radio Station in search for a job. He approached the head program director, Milton Butterball Smith, with intense enthusiasm and told him that he was looking to work as a disk jockey. The director asked him if he had any prior experience in broadcasting or in journalism. Les Brown said that he had none but would try his best. He told him that he could visualize himself on the air broadcasting in his head and that he practiced doing it every day. All he needed was the chance to prove himself. The director listened to him, but told Les that he wasn’t looking for anybody at the time and that they only hired people that had experience. The answer was no and he was sent away.

Les was initially devastated by the final decision of Mr. Smith because the only thing he wanted right then and there was to be a disc jockey. When he went back to his teacher to tell him what happened, he was encouraged to go back to the studio. Mister Washington said, "Don't take it personally, some people are so full of negativity that they have to say no 7 times before they will say yes. Go back! You need to be hungry!" With that said, Les returned the following day.
The next day Les returned with just as much enthusiasm and went through the same routine of "Hello mister Butterball, how are ya sir? My name is Les Brown sir and I'd like to be a disc jockey," as he had the day before. Mister Butterball needless to say was very surprised that Les would come in the next day after he had been told no. He asked why he came back and Les Brown replied, "I wasn't sure if somebody had gotten laid off sir." “No,” the director assured him. “Nobody has been laid off and we still don’t have a position like I had told you yesterday. Please leave and go find a better way to use your time.” Les was sent home again, but he remembered what his teacher said, so he returned the next day. The same thing happened the next day, Les Brown walked in as if never have been told no and proceeded with the same routine again for the third time. The director was incredibly confused why Les had returned after having been told twice that there wasn’t a job for him there and asked why he returned. Les replied without missing a beat, "I wasn't sure if someone had gotten sick or died." “Look,” Mr. Butterball replied, “nobody got sick, nobody died, and nobody got laid off. Would you please do me a favor and leave and don’t come back tomorrow?” Les Brown replied, “Yes sir!” and left. The next day, Les came back for the fourth time and said "Hello Mister Butterball, how are ya sir? My name is Les Brown sir and I'd like to be a disc jockey." Mr. Butterball shouted back at Les, “Go get me a coffee!” He got the job.

A lot of the most successful people of today, were once considered crazy when they started because they repeatedly did the same thing, even though it wasn’t working for them. They were viewed by the outside world as doing the exact same actions over and over and getting the same results, but that’s only the perspective from the outside. The person looking from the outside of the window usually can't always see clearly through the glass. A person watching a play can't see what's going on behind the scenes because all of the actors are behind the curtain, while they are sitting down in the audience. What they can’t see and don’t understand, is all the stuff that happens behind stage is happening to make the show go smoothly. Ask anyone practicing their musical scales on an instrument what they are doing and they’ll say, “Getting better.” Sure, it may sound monotonous to someone who doesn’t play, but the point of practice is so that you have to worry about fumbling when it’s show time. Yes, the journey in the beginning might seem really tedious and yes, it takes more effort and courage to put yourself on the stage, but it's also a lot more rewarding for the individuals who are a part of it, instead of the ones who are just watching.

Sylvester Stallone who started his fame from the motivational movie "Rocky," didn't accept “no” for an answer when he decided that he was going to become an actor. Despite his unfortunate appearance, lack of professional contacts, and speech style, he still managed to produce and play as the lead role in a Blockbuster hit. He had the burning desire to inspire people and show them what they are capable of and that desire only strengthened as he was rejected. He had it in his mind that he was going to become an actor. He was rejected roughly 1,500 times between different agencies about 6 or 7 times each. He was notorious for sleeping in waiting rooms until the person in charge could see him. After he didn't get what he was looking for, he set out to start writing his own scripts and even sold one for a measly hundred dollars as he worked at getting better, but most importantly didn’t give up.

After being inspired from watching a fight between Mohamed Ali and Chuck Wepner, Stallone wrote the entire storyline of the fictional character Rocky Balboa, without sleep, in about 20 hours. He immediately began showing it to people, hoping to find someone to take the movie on. Eventually, after being rejected continuously for months, someone offered him up to $300,000, but the stipulation was that he would not be in the movie. Stallone rejected the offer because his dream was to be the lead role in it and he wasn’t going to settle even though it was the only offer he had. His dream was to make a film and star in it. He wouldn’t sell himself short. Stallone wasn’t a known actor, so the company wasn’t going to take on that much risk, but they finally settled on an agreement. $35,000 in total, but Stallone could be the main part. The entire production ended up costing $1,000,000 to make, but it grossed over $200,000,000 when it was done; it was a great hit and a classic by today’s standards. Sylvester Stallone had a clear idea of exactly what it was he wanted and he followed through with a burning desire to get it. He didn’t get offers at all in the beginning and even when he was presented one, he wasn’t afraid to reject it.
Even though he had only pennies in his pocket, he would not compromise his vision for any amount of money. He had a clear vision, a strong purpose, and he believed in what he was doing. He focused on where he wanted to be, instead of what he didn't have. Sylvester Stallone was able to succeed, because this was not something that he wanted; it was something that he needed.

Dashrath Manjhi, the man who dug out an entire canyon by himself who we talked about in a previous, was willing to dedicate his entire life to making a path through the mountain. The only thing that he wanted was to make it easier for people to get medical help so they wouldn't have to watch someone important to them die like he had to witness. He was ridiculed and at a disadvantage, but his determination kept his fire lit for twenty-two years. Could he have died in those years? Sure, but that wasn't in his mind when he was hacking away at the rock. He was willing to pay the ultimate price to see his vision come to fruition. He valued nothing more than his goal; not sleep, not food, not money. He had such a compassion for his people that he worked night and day without reward or acknowledgment. The reason he succeeded? His dream wasn't a should; it was a must.

Motivational speaker and humanitarian, Tony Robbins said that we always get our "musts," but we never get our "should." Which one is which, is a matter of what's important to you and what you prioritize. Viktor Frankl's observations in the camp showed him that a person void of dreams and meaning becomes dead on the inside and then soon after, on the outside. Are we making our purpose in life a must, or a should? Not living up to your dreams and hopes would be an awfully terrible thing to happen on account of the fact it's not in your schedule. Do you have a dream? What are you doing to make it a reality

Thanks for reading! Take care!