Romantic Comedy
If you are a fan of old-time radio, vintage movies, or early television, you are very familiar with the name Jack Benny. Mr. Benny was a great comedian of that time, and he was known for playing his violin horribly— as well as being cheap and stingy. Later, biographies revealed that Jack Benny was actually quite accomplished as a violinist and played benefit concerts with a number of orchestras during the Depression. His fame and notoriety as a comedian and movie star made it possible for these financially struggling orchestras to raise the funds they needed to survive. His comic routines about him being cheap and stingy were also far from reality as his generosity and philanthropy became legendary.
Jack Benny was married to his wife Mary Livingstone for almost 50 years. She was a part of his act on radio, television, and in the movies. Their marriage seemed to defy all of the stereotypical pitfalls experienced by high-profile couples in the entertainment industry.
The day after Jack Benny’s funeral, there was a knock on Mary Livingstone’s door. She opened it and discovered a delivery man with one perfect rose for her sent by her late husband, Jack Benny. She was overtaken by the emotion of his thoughtful gift and planned to keep the rose as long as possible. Her plans proved to be unnecessary when the next day there was another knock on her door signaling the delivery of another rose. This continued each day throughout the rest of her life.
All of us hopefully remember the significant people in our lives on birthdays, anniversaries, and holidays, but it’s the unexpected gestures that make a huge difference in our relationships. Whether you’re considering your personal or professional life, meeting expectations is the minimal requirement to live an average life. But as soon as we go beyond expectations, we enter the rarefied environment of people who live great lives.
You don’t need to exceed expectations by much in order to make a huge difference. It’s the brief thank you note, thoughtful message, or kind gesture that makes a huge difference to those that we work or live with. For a multi-millionaire movie star like Jack Benny, arranging a daily delivery of a rose to his wife probably only took a few minutes, but it impacted her every day of the rest of her life, and here I am a half-century later telling you about it—not because it was a huge thing, but because it exceeded expectations.
As you go through your day today, do what is expected and a little bit more.
Today’s the day!