Today is July 25 and the Navigate the Chaos question to consider is “How often do you find yourself waiting for success?”
American comedian Jonathan Winters once said “I couldn't wait for success, so I went ahead without it.” Successful people who navigate the chaos like Winters understand that forward progress is far better than standing still.
Born in 1925 Winters quit high school at 17 and joined the Marines. After serving two and half years in the Pacific Theater during World War II he returned home to Ohio. His career began as a result of a lost wristwatch, about six or seven months after his marriage to Eileen. The newlyweds couldn’t afford to buy another one.
Then Eileen read about a talent contest in which the first prize was a wristwatch, and encouraged Jonathan to “go down and win it.” She was certain he could…and he did. His performance led to a disc jockey job, where he was supposed to introduce songs and announce the temperature. Gradually his ad libs, personas and antics took over the show.
He performed in Columbus, Ohio for two and a half years, quitting his job at a television station in 1953 when they refused him a $5.00 raise.
After promising his wife that he would return to Ohio if he did not make it in a year and with $56.46 in his pocket, he moved to New York City.
After obtaining an agent he began stand-up routines in various nightclubs. His big break occurred when he worked for Alistair Cooke on the CBS Sunday morning show Omnibus.
During this time Winters suffered a nervous breakdown, was eventually diagnosed with manic depression (bipolar disorder today) and spent 8 months in a private mental hospital. Over time Winters learned to manage his condition and he went on to record many albums and appear in dozens of movies and television appearances.
Winters did not wait for success and instead went out and despite his mental health issues still found a way to move ahead without success.
Are you waiting for success? Or are you moving forward without it?