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Go Figure

Now who truly knows what drives a man to act as he does? All I can say is that for the most part, I am constantly baffled by human behavior. It could just be that I am lacking in wisdom and understanding. Let’s take the case of one Jimmy Fallon.

Here is a guy who, for as long as I can remember, and since we’ve known each other from early childhood, is quite a long time, has striven for recognition.

He grew up in a large family, four brothers and three sisters. He was the third youngest, which meant he was kind of lost in the pack. Two of his older brothers were star athletes. Billy, the oldest, reached as far as Triple A with the Cleveland Indians farm system before his career ending shoulder injury. In childhood, out of all his siblings, one had to say that Jimmy was the least distinguished.

We had gone on to college together. He was an average student. But along the years, he had developed, for lack of a better word, charisma. There was something about him that just drew others towards him. He was a good story teller and could be quite funny, but these qualities by themselves did not capture the entire picture. There was a certain X factor. Hard to pinpoint, but if forced I would have to say that when you were around Jimmy, he had the gift of making you feel like a somebody. He had the ability to focus his attentions entirely on anyone he so desired. Looking straight into his companion’s eyes, listening intently to every word, even in an auditorium full of people Jimmy could make you feel like the two of you were the only two souls in existence. Irregardless of gender, Jimmy certainly had, somewhere along the line, acquired this quite unique talent.

Jimmy had become an accountant. He began working at a mid sized firm, one that specialized in corporate taxes. He started at the very bottom rung of the ladder, but due to his magnetic personality, he advanced quite rapidly within the company. Although he was not, by any means, the finest accountant within the firm, new clients flocked to him by the dozens, asking by name for the use of his services. By his fifth year, his employer, fearing him striking out on his own and taking his many clients with him, had no choice but to offer him part ownership in this quite large corporation.

Now this proposition turned out to be a monumental turning point. And in my mind, at least, his reaction was, to say the least, quite incomprehensible.

Frank Brooks, the senior partner, walks into Jimmy’s office early Monday morning, cheerful as all hell, and tells Jimmy that upper management is awaiting his arrival at the company boardroom. All intimations are that only good news awaits him.

When Jimmy finally enters the room, all rise and give him a standing ovation. Frank seats Jimmy at his side, joining him at the head of the table, which heretofore was unheard of.

Frank rises, and goes on to explain, with much flattery, Jimmy’s great contributions to the firm. When he finally gets around to offering Jimmy not a small percentage of the company, all are on their feet once again, applauding. When everyone is settled down, Jimmy gets up to say his piece.

It wasn’t just that the audience was not prepared for Jimmy’s rejection of this most generous offer. It was the seemingly abrupt change in his personality that really threw them for a loop.

Jimmy, at first, was magnanimous in his praise of management for this big hearted offer. He thanked, individually, everyone who was present.

And that’s when things got, well, a little strange, to say the least.

Jimmy began espousing his belief that without his presence at the firm, it would have remained just another one of your run of the mill outfits. It was he, Jimmy Fallon, who single handily lifted this company upon his broad shoulders, lifted it up from it’s predestined role of obscurity. Without him, he pointedly exclaimed, they would be nothing.

Therefore, he demanded a majority, controlling interest in the company. If this was not granted, he continued, by tomorrow he will have packed his belongings and would strike out on his own , taking all of his clients with him.

Those around the table were flabbergasted. They never, in their wildest imagination, could have anticipated such a response. True, without Jimmy, they would lose quite a few clients. But, it struck them, that Jimmy had no real talent, no organizational ability. Other than the fact that he was a very popular and magnetic personality, he had no real skills. And once his clients discovered this, well, those in the room believed that most of them would return their business to the firm.

What truly baffles me is that, deep down, Jimmy knew all this was true. He knew the odds of success, striking out on his own, were minuscule. And yet, that is exactly what he did.

Within a year, Jimmy found himself waiting tables at a pretty hi class restaurant, making about one tenth his previous salary, never mind what he would have been earning as a part owner.

But you want to hear something interesting? I had dinner with him just a few nights ago, and I can honestly say that he sounded much happier and more content than when he was making the big bucks.

Go figure.

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