Do you walk the talk, talk to talk or talk to remind?
Professional wrestler Rick Flair walks the talk, “To be the man you have to beat the man!” Radio and television personalities tend to talk just to talk. It has nothing to do with you but wow did those low vocals tones vibrate your stereo or what? Then there’s my current habit of talking to remind; I say things out loud as a way of reminding me to pick up bird food on the way home.
Which personality are you?
Wait! I’ll toss in one more; straight from the pages of my greatest teacher Julia Cameron; talk to talk yourself out of doing it.
In an age of too much to do and the never ending bosses expectations, the human landscape has evolved into a species that coulda, woulda, mighta, if they hadn’t talked themselves out of finishing the project, “I went to college for this but ended up doing this.”
I always ask, “Why?”
The stories are endless; family, new ideas, was clueless on the true demands of the dream job, employment cut backs, no longer important, no respect for rookies and the amount of money they were willing to pay wasn’t printed in the books you studied.
Dreaming about success has swiped the courage to succeed from under our feet making it too easy to talk yourself out of doing something.
Once you begin the process of downsizing your ambitions the biggest wishes become whispers of wind that usually stop in for a visit on depressing Sunday nights when the heart is begging you to call in sick Monday. Once locked to your method of breathing lost are the reasons to look forward to making a difference. We talk to talk ourselves out of doing it.
Chasing dreams is costly. No wonder artists charge so much for their visions on canvas? To be the man you have to beat the man even if it means you spent $400 for the booth at the festival, your mind, body and soul will be satisfied if the total cost is covered.
Mark Twain (Samuel L Clemmons) spent nearly ten years writing and tossing out an autobiography he felt needed to be released. For years he’d talk with other celebrities about their personal journeys trying to convince them to do the same and although they might have, Mr. Twain found the concept of telling his all to be extremely difficult. Stenographers were hired, then editors who were never happy nor were the newspapers that demanded they get first shot at printing snippets of the storytellers words.
Then one day in 1909 the book was completed! Mark Twain’s autobiography would reach the people that had supported him from book one. A delighted man with many thoughts to carry believed this was a one shot opportunity to blaze a true trail of the image he kept, a self portrait of views and options; he would do nothing more than put forth the effort to paint a picture of where it all came from by being his true self…only to learn the moment it went into print a letter was received, “We can’t afford to pay you for your hard work. Can you wait until next year?”
Those around Twain shouted with anger, “How dare they treat the King this way! They will make tons of money printing it but to not share it with Twain is unheard of!”
Calmly Samuel walked with no expression never once thinking those with ink were purely taking advantage of him. His reply to the printer, “Please print what you have…I will use it to promote the entire presence of what I bring.”
Not one penny was earned for ten years of loyalty to a dream. Twain talked to talk himself out of doing it. To a writer, singer, producer or anybody creative the greatest gift isn’t always the value returned but rather the process of delivering. Passion comes with a price; what are you willing to sacrifice?
It saddens me to write that unique and one of a kind are no longer important in America. If there is to be value within the lines that make up who we are it’s found at a second hand store 60% off sale. Pushing the happy for the moment button needs two teams in game called Super Bowl followed by another sale. What we purchase today will never be displayed on future episodes of the Antique Road Show.
That won’t change without a physical effort of halting this mission we’re on to talk to talk yourself out of doing it. When it was announced yesterday that Steve Jobs would be stepping away from Apple for awhile news reporters questioned the future of the company. I honestly didn’t realize Steve was the receptionist too. Apple is brilliant because of several visions that were supported by what outsiders assumed as one man’s decision. Millions of Apples have been sold worldwide; if given the opportunity to dream might there be ten or fifteen Steve Jobs out there willing and able to take the pollen from this petal and breathe life into tomorrow?
If you haven’t sent your resume you’ve talked to talk yourself out of doing it.
I’ll always believe in you first…
arroecollins@clearchannel.com
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