Rewards
(A new link has been added to the Other Links page: A great site for Anna May Wong pictures.)
I've continued to pursue my interest in Anna May Wong. I've discovered another biography; I'll report on it later. I've watched several of her movies: The silent films Piccadilly and Peter Pan and the sound movie Shanghai Express. I've re-watched Thief of Bagdad (sic). I've obtained several pictures, including two autographed pictures. Most enjoyably, I found three public radio broadcasts about her, including one hour-long show on Wisconsin Public Radio interviewing the authors of the two recent biographies.
I continue to learn new things. One of the things is that Ms. Wong looked for roles, she wanted to keep working, but apparently did not focus on material rewards. She was careful with her money, invested wisely, lived within her means and was able to leave a substantial estate to her family, principally to her youngest brother who she treated like a son. (This brother is still alive and was available for interview in connection with one of the biographies.) Although well-paid, she was never the best-paid actress and, given the dearth of roles she was given, she never made the large sums that others enjoyed. The lesson I've taken from this part of the story is that she was interested in her work, in doing the best job she could, without regard to how much she was paid for the job, especially without regard to her relative pay.
This is a trait that assures high regard from the people we work with. It also tends to bring respect from others. If people see we're trying our best to do the best work we can do, they will generally respect us. We may not get the chance to do everything we're capable of, we may never benefit from material rewards, others may find us strange, we may be misunderstood, but we can be sure of respect and self-respect.
As I've noted before, doing our best is the most important reward we can get. It's nice when we're rewarded with applause, it's sometimes gratifying to be paid, but the most important reward is the satisfaction we can take in our own performance. And we can't take satisfaction if we pander to worldly expectations of reward, if we work for the rewards.
Learn another lesson from Anna May Wong: Look for the most challenging jobs you can find and do your best. You'll be rewarded by the way you feel about yourself. And you'll often find that others respect you as well. As I always say, at least you'll set a good example for others.
3-22-04
Home Page 2004 Archives 2003 Archives 2002 Archives 2001 Archives 2000 Archives 1999 Archives