Today is January 6 and the Navigate the Chaos question is "Is it possible to do the impossible?
Those that navigate the chaos often show others what is possible. Music director Kurt Masur and award winning actor Ali Stroker are two such examples.
For example, is it possible to conduct an orchestra without a baton?
Yes, of course it is!
Kurt Masur, the music director emeritus of the New York Philharmonic was born in Brieg in the Silesian region of Germany (now Brzeg, Poland) his father was an engineer, and, at his pragmatic insistence, young Kurt studied to become an electrician.
But Kurt he also studied music, training as a pianist, organist, cellist and percussionist. Wanting to make the field his calling, he entered the National Music School in Breslau.
But by the time he was 16, an inoperable tendon injury in his right hand had made performing impossible, and he chose to concentrate on conducting. As a result of the hand condition, Masur conducted without a baton throughout his career.
So in his very brief review of an amazing life we can find three important lessons.
First, pursue your own interests. Even though his father recommended a career path Masur took the time to discover his own interests.
Second, when one door closes find a way to open another. Masur's inoperable tendon injury made performing impossible so he decided to pursue conducting.
And third, just because most people do it doesn’t mean you have to. Masur conducted without a baton.
So before you quit or think that something is impossible, remember to stay true to your own interests, find another door to open and believe in yourself even though no one has done what you want to do.
Kurt Masur had an amazing life and career practicing those three traits. So too has Ali Stroker.
For those that would have you believe it is impossible to become a Broadway actor who is wheelchair bound, remind them of Ali Stroker. Stroker is the first actor in a wheelchair to earn a degree from the New York University Tisch Drama Department.
She is the first actress in a wheelchair to appear on a Broadway stage and the first actor in a wheelchair to be nominated for a Tony Award.
She would eventually win the 2019 Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Musical for her performance in Oklahoma. Due to a car accident at two years of age, Stroker has dedicated her life to help people see what is possible. "Seeing somebody who is disabled, or differently abled on stage, I think, allows people to see this possibility.”
St. Francis of Assisi noted "Start by doing what is necessary; then do what's possible; and suddenly you're doing the impossible." Both Masur and Stroker did what was necessary, then what was possible and ended up doing the impossible by conducting an orchestra without a baton and becoming an award winning actor on Broadway.
Do you believe you can start with what is necessary, move on to what is possible in order to do the impossible?
It is important to remember that people who navigate the chaos know how important it is to believe that the impossible is indeed possible.
Even if they have no idea how they are going to make it happen they start and find a way to move forward one step at a time.
Google co-founder Larry Page talked about this when he gave a speech describing how he had a "healthy disregard for the impossible and wrote down the things I thought were impossible but wanted to accomplish anyway. We were close to not starting Google. Do not be afraid of failure. Instead, have the goal to fail a lot and eventually you will succeed. Take a little more risk in life and if you do it often enough it will pay off.”
Page had a healthy disregard for the impossible. Do you believe you can start with what is necessary, move on to what is possible in order to do the impossible?