By way of epilogue:
A young monk seeking enlightenment travels far to question a Zen master living by the edge of a forest. When he arrives the master is sitting besides a stream fishing. He young monk approaches the master with great respect and sincerity. “Master, I have travelled far because I have heard of you from all parts of the world. I asked many to help me find enlightenment and they have all guided me to you. So tell me. What is the path to enlightenment?” The master said nothing and handed him a fishing pole. They sat there many days eating and fishing. The young monk grew impatient and asked a second time only to be given the same response. He asked a third time growing more impatient.
Finally one night when the moon was full and high above them he awakens the young master with these instructions. “Go out into this forest and find for me the most perfect branch that you can. When you believe you have found it then bring it back to me and I will give you enlightenment.”
So the young monk packs some food, gathers his sparse belongings and heads into the thick of the forest guided only by the moon. By daybreak he is lost and scared. But he remembers his task and the promise of enlightenment. He spends years in the forest examining the branches. He first tries to figure out some way of measuring the branch. Then he ponders its shape and color and then he asks himself where would the perfect branch hide itself.
One evening after eating nut, grass and berries because he has run out of the food he had brought with him and he lays down exhausted falling into a deep sleep. Suddenly his sleep is broken by the sound of the wind and a loose branch hovering a few feet above him. He looks at the branch annoyed because his sleep has been interrupted. Then he sees it. The perfect branch. He has found the branch that he had been seeking.
With a few tugs the branch is pulled away from the tree. He wraps it in his arms and now must find his way out of the forest and then find the master. He is nervous but determined. Very soon he will have enlightenment.
He finally finds is way out of the forest and back to the master. The master sees him approaching and puts downs his fishing pole. The young monk hands him the branch with great reverence. The master examines it for a moment and suddenly strikes the young monk who falls to the ground in confusion.
The master says to him in a voice like river water whisper, “you have been enlightened.”
I was sent into the world seeking the perfect song with the perfect words and the most sublime of rhythms. My master was FM radio. It promised me fame, fortune, and creativity not to mention any number of women to join me on the journey. Lately, I began thinking in terms of being a leader in this world of art that I had so diligently prayed to like the Hebrews prayed to the fatted calf. And lately I’ve been given even more thought to that which has somehow faded away, a slight candle in the turbulent winds that all but flickered out. I forgot the joy of creation that takes place in the word, the melody, and the rhythm. I had all but lost the spirit that had guided me along the way. And I returned with my branch to the master. And the master slammed me upside the head with the branch and I fell in confusion.
Like that young monk, however, I truly walked away with a wisdom that could not have been discovered any other way. And so now I bring the fun back into this world I have chosen. What you read next my friend is the uninterrupted contemplations of the inner child who plays his music by the river waiting for a fish to tug on the line of a nearby fishing pole.
Any vision of success in the entertainment industry is not going to be an easy one for most. Let’s get real about it. It’s a high-wire act in its best moments. And it is going to take an incredible amount of inspiration from multiple sources. So every morning, every afternoon, and every night. This post is going to speak very plainly and very to the point. I want to achieve success in this industry and that means gathering every piece of information and insight that I can get my hands on.
I have found something of great interest just this evening. In a conversation in class the subject was risk management. We had many good examples of the value of careful planning in this regard. One in particular resonated with me more that the others. The subject was the infamous Janet Jackson half-time show at the Super Bowl. Janet had some ‘costuming’ challenges when a small section of her outfit strategically placed decided to go postal. Now I have watched numerous clips from this great moment in sports and I literally had to squint in order to get the briefest glimpse of Janet’s body parts. I could not help but wonder at the absurdity of this.
We are talking about a world where another Jackson superstar made grabbing one’s crotch a universal kinetic semiotic. We are talking about a generation who sat back on their comfy couches watching the bombing of a school in Iraq in vivid detail, slow motion and voice over analysis bragging about the accuracy of this particular weapon. It just strikes me how this particular moment in time of a young woman accidently caught in a murphy’s law scenario could catch the attention of such a wide audience.
So what does this have to do with leadership? For one thing leadership requires careful and objective scrutiny of the audience. Without this sort of insight there is no leader, only a hapless peasant who—because of his striking resemblance—finds himself a mask for the king. For those unfamiliar with this theme I turn your attention to a beautiful movie called the shadow warrior. To sum up this notion it is worth recalling that this peasant is transformed into a leader only after he drawn face-to-face with his humanity. This is also the story of King Lear.
And so now I have moved from Janet Jackson’s accidental display of a certain body part to a Japanese film, and ending in a Shakespearian tragedy. So how did I box myself into this corner and more important, how do I get out. Who knows. I suppose the answer lies in the mere fact that I love to do this sort of thing—extrapolate on life’s little weirdness.
Perhaps this is my realization. Life is for me something of a roller coaster ride where the rider hovers briefly over the crowd. And then suddenly he is dropped into a series of frenetic tumbles and turns only to be brought to a halt and only allowed back on again if he will pay his tab. That’s just life my friend. So the lesson I learn is that controversy works, the unexpected is what ultimately guides the day, and that even the king and the king’s fool can find their humanity. And it is through giggling at this outlandish world that sometimes the greatest of new leaders will find the conviction and their vision that will maintain and transport them to new levels.
So if you find yourself one day at a meeting only to discover your fly is down just zip it up and move on. And for the ladies one day if you are in that same meeting and you happen to notice you blouse tipping a bit too low well just hike it up and move on. Ultimately we are all naked in this industry although we do our best to hind behind a manufactured confidence. The real leaders just don’t let on.
I’ll leave you with this mention from the movie “Patton.” Patton is hover about the third tier of his headquarters. The place is filled with movement and barking voices. Mean are shuffling papers between each other, discussing charts, and answering communiqués. The place is awash in a level of kinetic energy that would stand to the worst tropical storm. The situation is tense. Patton is out of supplies, his men are stuck in their position because of bad weather and no gas. It’s a real mess. And his most trusted staff’s best opinion is to withdraw. Patton speaks plainly and loudly to his immediate staff that this is not an option. By the end of his tirade he has the attention of the entire room. Afterwards one of his aids says to him in a joking fashion “George, sometimes I think they don’t know when you are telling them the truth or not.” George says something to this effect: “It’s not important for them to know, it’s only important that I know.” I paraphrase a bit but the message is clear enough or at least give’s something to ponder.
So don’t ask me what the reality of this carnie show is at the moment. Just let me collect my little tokens and just give me the chance to stay on this roller coaster for as long as I can. And when my time is up never let anyone say that I didn’t give him or her one hell of a show. Rage on!
For those who would be leader I invite them to join me in my search for that perfect branch. Just don’t be surprised when you get whacked. It’s for your own good. Want to be a great and visionary leader? Find and follow your vision and don’t begrudge its role just as the young master did not begrudge his.
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