Embrace the 'Nado

In America you never know what might reach a tipping point and become a cultural phenomenon.  SyFy’s original movie Sharknado is one such phenomenon.  Much in the same vein as Snakes on a Plane, Shraknado was movie that was hyped purely for its title.  The movie’s poster even came with the tagline, “Enough Said!”  It was literally a movie about sharks being thrown into Los Angeles from a tornado/hurricane.  (On a side note, looking through some of SyFy’s original titles is awesome and hilarious.  I personally think they should stop making movies and only produce titles and movie posters.)  One look at that story line and most people would go, “Ehhh, sounds neat.”  And that would include the cast and crew.

But not the director of the movie, Anthony C. Ferrante.  The movie would be ridiculous and outside the conventions of Hollywood and he knew it.  To keep his cast and crew from falling to negativity regarding the said ridiculousness his mantra on the set was, “Embrace the ‘nado.”  There’s a lot of wisdom in those words.

That simple phrase brings to mind the famous words of Mark Twain, “Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn't do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.”

Whatever your “‘Nado” is embrace the shit out of it.  Are you a geek and like geeky things?  Embrace your ‘Nado.  Are you thinking about spending a year traveling instead of going to school?  Embrace your ‘Nado.  Want to starting your own business?  Embrace your 'Nado.  Thinking about trying heroin for the first time?  That’s probably one ‘Nado you should avoid.  You get the point.

There’s a good training lesson in there as well.  Carefully calculated training programs have gotten a lot of people stronger, but at some point you have to say, “Fudge it” and go ape shit crazy on a set.  Being careful and always lifting with perfect technique will take you far but only to a certain point.  Take a chance on hitting a weight that scares the shit out of you.  Strain, struggle, let your form go to shit (within safe parameters) and push past your physical and mental barriers.  The ones that can embrace, harness, and use their ‘Nados for good are rarely on the wrong side of success. 

Smooth seas do not make skillful sailors. -African Proverb

Embrace your inner ‘Nado; let it sweep you away from your safe harbor.  There is opportunity is every adversity.  Remember that.