What Johnny Depp Can Teach Us about Perfection #atozchallenge

“We’re all damaged in our own way. Nobody’s perfect. I think we’re all somewhat screwy; every single one of us.” – Johnny Depp

The legend of Johnny Depp (a mysterious, boundless, hot, untouchable hero who men love just as much, if not more than women) is one of a mythological figure that even the actor himself doesn’t live up to. He smokes, drinks and threatens to bite the noses off of any paparazzi who snap photos of his children.

These characteristics illustrate how Depp is simply a man; a talented man indeed, but, a man nonetheless. Those of us who adore him have kept the legend alive by putting him up on a pedestal of perfection but there are two things we can learn from the man that perfected the art of being strange.

Lesson #1 - Perfection lies in the Versatility of a Thing

This Oscar nominated actor’s rise from the horror film “A Nightmare on Elm Street” to upcoming western “The Lone Ranger” and a long-standing role as Captain Jack Sparrow in the “Pirates of the Caribbean” franchise can be attributed to his adaptable nature. If you compare the average person’s quest for perfection to Depp’s performance in each of his roles, however, flexibility is rarely among anyone’s top priorities.

As precious as time is, it’s troubling how much of it we waste trying to be perfect in every way. People seek a perfect appearance, perfect relationships, perfect mates, perfect jobs, etc. while trying to be perfect cooks, perfect hosts to house guests, perfect athletes – the list goes on.

If Johnny Depp teaches us anything, it is that a little lot of versatility can take you very far on the path to being the best in whatever role you choose to play. Want to be a perfect mountain climber, runner, writing professional, employee of the month or whatever has you putting in those extra inches of time and effort?

Consider being flexible in how you reach that desired level of perfection. Doing so will likely get you closer to your goal – you’ll just have to realize that a perfect toned body doesn’t have to look like an exact replica of the Olympic swimmers or gymnasts to be deemed a success.

You also don’t need to have your name in the Guinness Book of World Records for being the slimmest, most muscular or healthiest person alive to be the perfect YOU – whatever that looks like throughout your exterior and interior selves. The same goes for professional goals and personal interests.

Lesson #2 – All you have to do is be perfect at one Thing

The Guardian says Johnny Depp is not the best actor in the world, yet, possesses a “kooky freakery” that cannot be matched by anyone else. Despite Depp being what many people would describe as a weird individual, he is able to channel that into his work, resulting in large box office returns and critical acclaim. That goes to show that one need not be perfect in every sense of the word to excel in life.

In fact, as Johnny Depp would have it, you might be better off staying in your lane and making it work to your advantage instead of worrying about the areas where you fall short. If you are a great cook, then who cares if you can’t draw or paint worth a damn?! If you won the genetic lottery and are drop-dead gorgeous, then why are you stressing about the length or color or texture of your hair?! First, be glad that you have hair and food on the table to work with in the first place.

Perfect the things that you are best at and let those qualities shine through. The rest can probably be obtained or developed later as you go through life – or not. Either way, at least you can rest with the confidence of knowing that you are perfect the best great at something – whatever that something is.

Just as the definition of beauty varies depending on whom you ask, perfection is not something that we can put an exact finger on since it looks different from one person to another. Unfortunately, many of us forget that as we try to live up to certain standards that are skewed in the interests of public opinion and then measured against our own inner critics. It is a recipe for disaster in a never-winning battle.

Think these lesson are full of crap? Well, embracing quirks worked for Johnny Depp – and who is going to argue with a man who lives in three different countries and sits among the highest paid actors in Hollywood?! I’m not dismissing the importance of you striving to make yourself better, especially when it comes to getting out of your comfort zone every now and then. On the contrary, I am suggesting that the fastest route to perfection may be finding your thing, embracing it and working the hell out of it until you’re a master at it – and even then, there will continue to be more work to do.

If YOU could perfect one thing about yourself, what would it be?

Do YOU think perfection exists? If so, how does one obtain it? If not, then why are people trying to obtain it?

*A to Z Challenge Alert as of Saturday, April 20th, 2013: I'm not feeling well this evening and thus, the posts for Letters Q and R will be posted tomorrow on Sunday, April 21st, as a double feature.

“I’m not paid to give my Opinion” - The Rooney Mara Option #atozchallenge

*A to Z Challenge Alert: I’m playing catch-up today for Letter O and my post for Letter P will be published soon. 

Research specialist, Lisabeth, delivered a thorough report on journalist Mikael Blomkvist to a company suing him for slander in the mystery drama “The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo” starring Daniel Craig and Rooney Mara. In a meeting, however, the company’s head executive told Lisabeth he was more interested in what’s not in this report – her opinion; to which she responded “I’m not paid to give my opinion.” If more people withheld information or observations that didn’t warrant an inclusion in conversations that concerned a particular subject, like Lisabeth does, our lives would be so much easier to handle.

Since the beginning of time, it seems like everybody and their momma not only have an opinion, but are very willing to share it with you, me and everyone they know – even when unprompted – whether we pay them or not. There’s nothing wrong with expressing ourselves by sharing our thoughts and viewpoints with the world. Yet, it is unnecessary to do so if these viewpoints are filled with judgment, gossip or plain ol’ information that does more harm than good.

The way I see it (IMO, of course!), there are only a few positions in which one is justified in distributing their opinions to others who may or may not use the information to treat someone badly or aid in his or her misfortunes. These positions include but are not limited to newspaper/magazine columnists, authors and talk show hosts – and even then we still have to question – do we really need to know what they think? Oftentimes, we don’t.

Our lives would be better served sharing information on a need to know basis, just like Lisabeth only gave her opinion when prodded to do so. She gave the businessman what counted – information that could be used to help his company’s case against a reporter. So let this be a lesson learned that if you’re going to share your opinion, then at least make it count for something.

• Make it count in the form of who or what you choose to vote for on a local, national and international level – from your Mayor to the food served during your kid’s soccer team trip to whether or not they build a WaWa or Starbucks down the street.

• Make it count where you choose to spend your dollars by supporting businesses that are worth your hard-earned money and refraining from shopping at or patronizing companies that do not deserve it.

• Make it count with the company you keep by not hanging out with people who are toxic to your own personal, spiritual or mental growth and people who try to challenge your beliefs instead of accepting your differences. This may or may not include people who drive under the influence, people who are cruel to animals, people who are violent or just anyone whose actions or disposition clashes with your own in a bad way.

Our lives would also be much easier if we stuck to facts like Lisabeth did in “The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo.” Even though she shared her opinion throughout the movie, she delivered the facts to her clients first. Let this also be a lesson; if you’re going to entertain someone else’s opinion, don’t accept it as fact just because they told you so.

A fact holds more weight and is supported by material that increases its validity. Opinion, however, is not fact. Still, that’s not to dismiss the usefulness of an opinion – it just depends on where it comes from since some people’s opinions hold more weight than others. This is probably due to either their level of credibility or their being in a position to sway popular opinion one way or another.

The film industry is a classic example of an opinion being given equal – or more – power than facts in some cases. A glowing review and two thumbs up from the late Roger Ebert would give little known indie films a better chance at being noticed by larger audiences; the same review may not be as noteworthy if it were authored by a random blogger named Joe Blow’s in Kentucky.

All in all, an opinion is typically challenged by another person’s opinion and so on until it becomes just one big fat mess of blabber. There are too many people talking about nothing and too many people causing drama, stress and trouble with their opinions. Let’s cut through all of this noise, to find the discussions that lift us up instead of the conversations that break us down. 

When has someone else’s opinion impacted YOU in a negative way?

Can YOU describe a time when another person’s opinion affected YOU in a positive way?

Do YOU share your opinion without being prompted or do you keep it to yourself until asked?

How to create a whole New You – Notes from the Big Screen #atozchallenge

*A to Z Challenge Alert: I’m playing catch-up today for Letter N, so my post for Letter O will be published soon. 

Each new day brings a new opportunity, right? It is a promising notion that sounds nice but leaves some people lost in the sea of infinite possibilities.

Making the most of every new day that we are given is easier said than done, especially for those who have no idea how to put this concept into practice. While we all may not need to live vicariously through the adventures, drama and thrill rides that occur in movies, many of us can benefit from taking a page from their books of starting over.

Hollywood and independent cinema shows us that we can spice things up at a moment’s notice, given enough determination. Here are ways to create a new you if your master plan for life is still in development; going one step and one simple (or drastic, depending on how you like it) measure at a time until you reach your destination. These examples are based on movie characters who, in one way or another, became new versions of themselves – for the betterment of their lives.

Force your boss to quit and then promote yourself to a new position like Danny does in “Kill the Irishman.”

Cut your hair and then move to Mexico the way Stoney does in “Set It Off.”

Plan to move to Texas and become a cowboy like Danny does in the crime biopic “Kill the Irishman.”

Color your hair and change your phone number the way Carrie does in the romantic comedy, “Sex and the City: The Movie.”

Leave a toxic relationship and then work at a diner to get back up on your feet the way Delia does in the romantic drama, “Personal Velocity.”

Go undercover as a police informant the way Pookie does in “New Jack City.”

Switch careers and open a lingerie retail store like Champagne does in the documentary “Gangstresses.”

Offer pro bono work at your job and make plans to help a man buy a house the way Gavin does in “Changing Lanes.”

What other examples of starting over and creating a NEW You can YOU add to this list?