Poster of "When Happiness Comes Knocking"
The American film "When Happiness Knocks" is based on the autobiography of the same name published in 2007 by Chris Gardner, an african-American investment expert, and is a typical American inspirational story. Directed by Gabriel Muccino and starring Will Smith, Jardine Smith, Sandy Newton, and others, the film was nominated for Best Actor at the 79th Academy Awards.
The synopsis is as follows:
African-American investment expert Chris Gardner was once a down-and-out salesman on the verge of bankruptcy and his wife leaving home, at the lowest point in his life, almost unable to survive, he never gave up his dreams, did not forget his father's responsibilities, studied hard, worked hard, tried everything to achieve his goals, first became a stock market trader, and finally became a well-known financial investor.
There is such a scene in the film that deeply touched me:
Chris took his son to play basketball on the rooftop. My son loves to play basketball and his dream is to become a professional basketball player.
Chris smiled and said to his son, "I see that you, like me, can't play basketball at all, you can't be a basketball player." ”
When Little Chris heard this, he was so frustrated that he reluctantly said, "Okay. ”
At this time, Chris said to his son with a serious look:
"Don't let anyone tell you you you can't do anything, not even me. If you have a dream, defend it... If you have an ideal, try to achieve it. ”
Stills from "When Happiness Knocks"
When his wife was extremely disappointed in him and thought he could not succeed, he did not give up;
He did not give up when he hurried from the detention center to an interview in his overalls stained with paint, facing questions from well-dressed senior investment experts;
When one customer after another rejected him on the phone, he did not give up;
When the big customer said that he was a rookie and could not entrust his financial investment to him, he did not give up;
When he was desperate and had to sell blood to survive, he still did not give up.
All this did not defeat him, he never gave up!
So, what is the strength that supports Chris to never give up, fight tenaciously, and finally realize his dream?
After watching the movie, I fell into a deep thought, what strength did Chris Gardner rely on to overcome great tribulations and achieve extraordinary achievements?
Thinking of yesterday's article by my friend Golden Box, "There is another explanation for "Impatience"", I suddenly understood that Chris Gardner is a man with a strong "blunt sense of power".
The term "blunt force" originated from the invention of the Japanese writer Junichi Watanabe. According to his explanation. "Blunt force" can be literally translated as "dull power", that is, calmly facing setbacks and pains in life, and firmly moving in its own direction, it is "the means and wisdom to win a better life".
Junichi Watanabe believes that "blunt sensitivity" does not equal dullness, but emphasizes a kind of endurance for difficult encounters, and the ability to fight against the outside world with a thick skin. It is a positive attitude towards life.
Now, let's combine the film and look at the five iron laws of blunt sensitivity:
1. Quickly forget what is unhappy.
In the film, Chris's embarrassing life is hardly a day of comfort: the bone density measuring instrument he sells is too expensive and no one will buy it, his wife's desperate departure, the government deducts almost all the money in his bank account because he owes taxes, he is kicked out of the house because he can't pay the rent, it is difficult to complete the performance because the customer refuses...
All these unhappiness, Chris can quickly forget, and then with a higher fighting spirit, into the action to achieve the goal.
2. Identify the goal and continue to challenge even if it fails.
When working as a salesman to sell medical equipment, Chris was rejected again and again, but he persistently insisted on working hard, tirelessly, running from hospital to hospital, interviewing doctors one by one, the instrument was broken, he repaired it himself, and finally sold out all the instruments to maintain his livelihood.
When he was an intern at a securities company, he missed the time to meet with a wealthy businessman's client for some reason, so he took his son to find the client's home and create an opportunity to interview the client.
After the customer refused, he did not give up, but continued to insist, bravely challenge, develop other customers, and finally complete the performance and achieve the goal.
3. Be open to gossip.
When Chris is white-eyed and insulted, he can face it calmly, consistently adhere to his beliefs, and with his own efforts, he has obtained the life he wants and won people's respect.
4. Always be grateful for jealousy and irony.
At first, Chris's life was depressed, he had no higher education in his early years, and he did not have any training in finance and investment knowledge, and it was inevitable that he would be looked down upon, and even his wife would laugh at him and ridicule him. But he didn't hate them. In the face of rejection and sarcasm, he often hangs on his lips: "Thank you very much."
This gratitude makes him always maintain a positive attitude, which is admirable, and in the end, it also brings him positive feedback.
5. In the face of praise, do not inch forward, do not forget the shape.
Chris's talent, hard work, and accomplishments were appreciated by the executives of securities companies. He did not get carried away by this, but was down-to-earth, earnestly studying, and moving towards his goal step by step.
Next, let's take a look at what are the two support qualities that form a blunt force.
Blunt sensitivity quality one: self-awareness
One of the important reasons why bluntness makes a person win in a complex competitive environment is that behind the blunt feeling is a strong self-awareness, or self-confidence.
Undoubtedly, Chris has such qualities. He knows exactly what his strengths are (mathematical talent), what he can do (securities brokers), and where he wants to go (in the field of financial investment).
It is precisely because he has such qualities that he can deeply understand his positioning and ability, believe in his own judgment, and believe that with his own efforts, he will eventually achieve an amazing career.
This kind of self-awareness is a high degree of wisdom, so that in a career full of pressures and challenges, in the most disappointed and most difficult times, he can still see the lamp of hope swaying in the distance, encouraging him to continue to work hard, keep moving forward, and finally reach the glorious end.
Blunt sensitivity quality two: motivation
Chris's struggle career is composed of a series of successes and setbacks, his success is a process of self-motivation and self-transcendence, and the strong motivation formed by the "blunt feeling" makes him step by step cross obstacles and embark on the peak of success.
The movie "When Happiness Knocks" through the story of Chris Gardner showed me the power of bluntness.