A New Mission Statement

Friday July 3rd, 2009 - Lake Villa, IL

Lots of good energy all around today. I finally feel like I’m starting to get a master plan of some sort together and I spent most of the day working on starting to execute it. Action is everything and ideas alone are nothing without it. I want to put my dreams in motion.

I have to focus on what I want and where I’m going with whatever resources I now have at my disposal. I thought about all of that today and tried to etch a sharply detailed picture of exactly what I see myself becoming on my mental movie screen. That’s where it starts.

Nothing worthwhile is built in a day but it sure can be visualized. My brain tends to get off track and wander frequently but that’s because I let it. Most of us never focus on what we really want so I took time to do that. I don’t want to miss out on my life‘s purpose if it indeed does have one. I guess it does if I give it one and I‘m grateful for a chance to do it.

Deep down I really feel my purpose is to make others feel good. I guess that’s all of our individual purposes indirectly but mine is getting clearer. I am a comedian and help those who are dented cans like me feel a little better about themselves. It’s a noble undertaking.

I started making a binder of my updated comedy notes and goals and totally got lost in it for several hours. I also upgraded my mission statement. I don’t know if many comedians have a mission statement but I’ve had one for many years. Now I need to actually DO it.

Here’s what I came up with: “Dobie Maxwell is a funny, famous, functioning, fulfilled entertainer. I will develop my potential to it’s very fullest and always continue to improve and grow as long as I’m alive.” It might not sound like much but I really thought it out.

Some comedians are funny but not famous while others are famous but not funny. A lot of entertainers and people in general are not functioning or fulfilled. I wonder if Michael Jackson was either one of those, especially at the end? Yes, he was very famous but that’s no guarantee for the last two. I want to be funny and famous and functional and fulfilled.

I was blessed with a dollop of funny and I’ve been working my whole life to develop it into a marketable product. This is where a lot of my problems have come up. Fame is not a guarantee of happiness so maybe that’s not the best word. Notoriety may be better. I am not looking to have to wear a disguise when I leave my hotel to see a movie or eat lunch.

I’m talking about being known in the circles I need to be known. In my case that would be the comedy world. I want to be known by not only my peers but also the public who is into comedy. I know I can light it up with the best of them and I’ve proven it many times.

It’s no longer a matter of ‘if’, it’s ‘how’. How do I put myself into the position of being seen by someone who can put me on TV or help me maximize my potential to wherever it will fully blossom? Management may be the answer and I need to explore that possibility. If I do get a chance I am confident I’ll make it pay off. I’ve paid my dues and then some.

That’s only the first two parts. I can be funny and famous but if I’m not living the other two it’s a waste of time. Functioning in my mind means living an upstanding life without becoming a slave to anything or anyone. I want to be a real person who enjoys all of life.

The last one is the best. Fulfilled in my mind is being a servant to humanity. Teaching a comedy class gives me a wonderful feeling of fulfillment because I’m able to be a part of helping someone live a dream. That’s why I’m so passionate about those who’ve crawled out of the sewer to pollute the jacuzzi. They’re just in it for the money. There’s way more.

Pulling off all four of those things isn’t going to be easy but that’s my mission and I am putting it out there so others can call me on it when I err. I’ve blown it before and there’s a good chance I will again but it will only be a temporary delay. I know where I‘m going.

Is there anyone I can think of who has done what I’m trying to do? Paul Newman comes to mind. He wasn’t a comedian but he was very talented and famous. His marriage was an extreme success and he did amazing charitable work and his kindness pays off to this day.

THAT is a life to aspire to in my opinion. I didn’t necessarily agree with his politics but that’s ok. He walked the walk and was true to his beliefs. He did solid work and was very much loved by his peers and admired by the public. I’d say he lived my mission statement to the fullest and I bet he had a great life. I wonder if I can tap into that space in my life?

I’m by far not Paul Newman or anyone else. I’m me, warts and all. I may not ever get to the heights of a Paul Newman or Paul Lynde or Alfred E. Neumann but if I don’t shoot at some kind of goal I’ll just drift off into the sea of unhappy shlubs who never really live.

I’m the first one to admit I’m a crazy bastard. I’m moody, petty, temperamental, easily hurt, persnickety and all the other quirks that go with creative types. I want what I want or nothing at all and sometimes I can clash with people right from the start. That’s how it is.

On the other hand I have a lifetime of great memories of exciting adventures from coast to coast and all over North America. I have great friends and continue to make more and I have BY FAR surpassed everyone’s expectations of where I’d end up from where I came.

I don’t think I’ve come anywhere near my potential yet and that really pumped me up as I looked over all my comedy notes. I wrote down my goals and also divided up into easily workable categories all the material I want to develop into stage bits and recordings too.

This is the fruit of a lifetime of labor. I boiled it all down to about 100 pages but it will continue to be rearranged and added to and eventually I can see that evolving into a book like George Carlin’s “Brain Droppings” and others. Those were just his comedy notes.

I feel totally rejuvenated right now. I’ve got a mission statement and a purpose and I am rested and ready to keep working. I made a binder for comedy stuff now I need to repeat it for comedy classes and also Uranus Factory Outlet. I can’t build anything without a plan.