This will help you to conquer the proclivity toward éxitophobia,* which is the fear of success.  To see this, let’s now jump ahead to chapter 1 of Jonah. 

“The word of the Lord” is the foundation for success (verses 1-2), whenever we have a sincere, intuitive inspiration.  This causes Jonah to flee (verse 3), not from his assignment directly, but in fact from the presence of the Lord (repeated again in the same verse, ‘from the presence of the Lord.’)  Now we can see 4:2 (from my previous post) in relation to this verse (1:3) – to flee from the Lord’s presence means Jonah was fleeing from His compassion and lovingkindness (also per 4:10-11).  The overriding theme of this book and attribute of Jonah’s character is that of selfishness, which we will clearly see in a future post in chapter 2, an angry spirit, and lack of compassion, which is still evident until the end of the book, with no change, in chapter 4.

Immediately, as if to say “I’m still here; you can’t flee from my presence,” the Lord manifests Himself.  The perfect storm (verse 4 of chapter 1).  Then the first half of verse 5 shows a clear move of futility, the first of two in this chapter.  There was NO reason to throw the cargo overboard because this was not the true cause.  The “non-Christian” mind could not understand the true spiritual dimension.  In fact, Jonah had told them that he himself was the cause of the storm – the second half of verse 10.  Thus, they lost all their cargo for nothing, with no benefit as a consequence.

How often do we behave this way?  Lots of activity and effort, but not really seeing the true spiritual dimension, and so no real consequence?  “Aversion to futility” is a major de-motivating force in our churches, organizations and businesses today because our members and employees can see that all their effort is not accomplishing anything.  They are averse to futility, while their leaders are addicted to it.  Addiction to futility is a symptom of éxitophobia.  So to overcome the fear of success, we must cultivate an aversion to futility.

 This is a factor in the “fear of success” because if we’re not PLANNING for success, and beyond the success – as I discussed in the previous post – then everything we do is futile. And this subtle, underlying sense of futility de-motivates us.  On the other hand, an aversion to futility will propel us to plan for, and beyond, the success.

I recently thought that I needed to replace the closet bolts on one of the toilets in our house.  There is only one way to do it: remove the toilet, including the wax ring, and everything.  So everything came out; I made the necessary mess in the bathroom.

And I did replace the bolts, but the toilet still sits above the floor, due to the placement of the closet flange.  The point is: We often dedicate so much effort and activity, yet in the end, we still haven’t fully accomplished what we set out to do.  Just like these sailors – lots of effort and activity, but focused in the wrong area; this equates to futile effort.  As I said, they lost all their cargo for nothing, with no benefit as a consequence.

Then the second move of futility occurs (in v. 13), as if they totally did not hear Jonah in v. 12 – “He said to them, ‘Pick me up and throw me into the sea. Then the sea will become calm for you, for I know that on account of me this great storm has come upon you.’ ¹³ However, the men rowed desperately to return to land but they could not, for the sea was becoming even stormier against them.”

Some people have a high sensitivity to futility, which leads to an aversion to it, and others – like these sailors apparently – do not, which results in a tolerance for futility.  Jonah gave them the true remedy for their crisis, but instead they tried to row desperately to return to land.

This is a problem because I, and many people like me, are averse to futility.  In fact, I think even stronger than a fear of success is my fear of futility.  So strong is this aversion that sometimes I am paralyzed, unable to start a project because I know I’ll be unable to finish it, thereby rendering it futile.

However, on the flip side, we can utilize the aversion to futility as a means to achieve success.

We must recognize our natural, human aversion to futility, and thereby exploit it to move us toward success.  In other words, aversion to futility can be one weapon in our arsenal to vanquish éxitophobia.

Aversion to futility is one key to overcoming the fear of success (like planning beyond the success – in my previous post), just as addiction to futility is one aspect of succumbing to it.

            Lee Cuesta

* Refer to my previous posts for my explanation of éxitophobia.

I’ve coined a word for the Fear of Success.  I call it éxitophobia – like agoraphobia.  It is based on the Spanish word, éxito, with an accent mark above the e, which means success.  And I believe this fear is valid because it’s a problem that’s described in several places in the Bible.  In this post, I want to explore this phobia in the book of Jonah, beginning with chapter 4, because Jonah is a classic case of éxitophobia.

In verse 1, Jonah’s response is anger and displeasure as a result of his success displayed in 3:10, immediately prior.  He was afraid that his ministry would be successful, and that God would withhold his wrath, which is exactly what happened.  “Was not this what I said while I was still in my own country?” (verse 2).  He continues: “Therefore, in order to forestall this, I fled” (NASB).  Forestall means to prevent, avert, hinder.  Is this sometimes the subconscious, unspoken attitude in missions today?  Jonah actually fled from the Lord’s presence, which we’ll see when we jump ahead in a future post to chapter 1 (verse 3), because he was afraid of success.

The second half of verse 2 in chapter 4 shows us the attributes of God with regard to missions, which is how Jonah knew that his preaching would be successful.  Jonah says, “I knew that You are a gracious and compassionate God, slow to anger and abundant in lovingkindness, and one who relents concerning calamity.”

We see the “what now?” syndrome as a symptom of éxitophobia in verse 5.  It says, “Then Jonah went out from the city and sat east of it. There he made a shelter for himself and sat under it in the shade until he could see what would happen in the city.”  He just sat there, waiting to see what would happen next.  After his amazing success, and his angry response, he was asking himself, “What now?”

The “what now?” syndrome is best illustrated in the 1972 movie The Candidate, starring a young and handsome Robert Redford.   Robert Redford plays Bill McKay, a California Democratic candidate for U.S. Senator.  Peter Boyle plays Marvin Lucas, McKay’s political handler.  McKay wins the election, and amid the victory celebration in the hotel, he says to Lucas: “Now.  I want to talk to you.”

The two of them step into the service elevator, but a Hispanic waiter in the elevator says: “You guys no supposed to be here.”  So they get off the elevator, walk down the hall, and enter a room.

Lucas says:  “We’ve got about 60 seconds of privacy before they find out we’re here.  So, what’s on your mind, Senator?”

Pause.

“I don’t know.”  The enthusiastic crowd starts pounding on the door and trying to come in.

“I’ve got to get out there.  I told you they’d be here.”

“Marvin, what do we do now?”

Lucas opens the door and says to the crowd, “Wait a minute.”  Then to McKay: “What?”

McKay mouths the words again:  “What do we do now?”

That’s the last line of dialogue in the movie.  The eager throng tries to rush in.  Lucas and McKay exit the room.  The door closes.  An empty, quiet hotel room.  The ending credits.

This final scene of the movie culminates the opening premise of the movie.  The campaign was never intended to succeed; in fact, its whole purpose was to not succeed.  Early in the movie, in the living room of McKay’s home, Lucas takes a matchbook and writes something inside of it.  He clicks his pen.

McKay asks: “You’re saying I can say what I want, do what I want, go where I please?”

“That’s right.  Here’s your guarantee.”  Lucas hands him the matchbook, and McKay looks inside.  The two words:

            YOU   LOSE 

McKay: “I lose.”

“That’s it.  So what are you worried about?  You’re free, McKay.  You don’t have a chance; so say what you want.”

The entire campaign was based upon the avoidance of success.  Like McKay, we don’t plan for success, which is why when we achieve it, we don’t know what to do next.  That’s why we see Jonah simply sitting under a vine after this great spiritual triumph.  He had no plan for follow-up after his evangelistic campaign.  This is the “What now?” syndrome.  We never plan beyond the potential success.  We envision success as an end in itself, rather than as a step toward a greater success.  So since we never plan beyond, we fear succeeding.

On the contrary, Christ’s ministry in discipleship was always one of planning for success – and beyond.  We must always plan beyond the success, like Jesus Christ, to prevent the fear of it.  Often, many Christians reflect this fear of success in their eschatology – their view of the end times.  They say things will get worse and worse until one day, poof, we’re outta here.  Unfortunately, this view of the end times is a historically new doctrine.  They fail to realize that, through the church, Christ has commissioned us to establish his kingdom.

In Matthew 13, verses 30 plus 40-43, Jesus reveals that God will gather the evildoers so that the righteous will remain and shine in His kingdom.  It’s like a “reverse rapture.”  Therefore, we must instead be planning not only for success, but also beyond – rather than fearing it.  We must always be prepared to answer the “what now” question, so that we never need to ask it.

            Lee Cuesta

This is how I might define success:  Success is the ability to do whatever you want (legally and morally).  In other words, success is the ability to enjoy my life.  Based upon that definition, I am about 67 percent successful.  My hobby is to achieve 100 percent success, based upon my definition.

Of course, this presupposes a secondary definition of success; that is, financial achievement in my career, which permits the ability to do whatever I want.

Yet for some reason, I behave as though I fear success.

Success implies a single-minded commitment to one thing.  That’s how success is achieved.  But my nature is to pursue multiple interests, thereby diluting each one.  Nevertheless, I am able at times to harness single-mindedness, which I will write about later when I address controlled obsession.  Also, I prefer to see things come to an end; not to continue on indefinitely.  Therefore, my dedication to “one thing” that’s time-bound is not conducive to a high level of success.

Every time I achieve a certain success, it requires and brings with it so much interpersonal interaction, especially nowadays via e-mail.  And that dilutes my focus, the “zone,” in which I achieved the success in the first place, and I hate that.  I want everyone to like me, but I don’t want anyone to know me.  That contributes to my fear of success.  I prefer privacy and anonymity.  It’s the distinction between “success” vs. “fame.”  I.e., I fear success because success will bring invasion of my privacy.  I fear success because it brings with it much of what is contrary to my personality.  The “success” that I would like to attain is solitude.  So I will measure my success by the degree to which I can afford to enjoy solitude.  (Solitude, by the way, need not imply complete isolation, but can include another person with whom you are perfectly in tune, which spells the difference between solitude and loneliness.)

Success brings a boatload of unintended consequences from the thing, my passion, that brought the success in the first place.  E.g., phone calls and e-mails from the fans who did like the novel; moderating thousands of comments because my website is active, etc.  I suffer from the fear of success because each success leads to another obligation/ responsibility; …because success will bring other obligations that distract from my obsession.  Thus, I fear giving in to my obsession because I know I will ultimately be distracted from it.

 Also, it is anti-climactic, depressing, to finish a project, which is another subtle reason that I fear success.  With each project, I am working toward that anti-climactic, depressed feeling.  Thus, how am I undermining certain projects by my underlying, subconscious fear so that it becomes self-fulfilling?  (I.e., the project is not completed – and all that time has been wasted.)

My fear of success is fear of the unknown – fear of disturbing the status quo, in which there is comfort and routine.

Although I fear success, it is a fear that I’m working to overcome.  That’s why this is the beginning of a several part series.  I have spoken on this topic on numerous occasions.  I will eventually collect the most relevant points into an e-book that will be free to download (or simply read online).  I’ve coined a word for the Fear of Success.  I call it éxitophobia – like agoraphobia.  It is based on the Spanish word, éxito, with an accent mark above the e, which means success.

I was lying in bed one morning or afternoon recently, when thoughts of this blog came into my mind.  And I asked myself mentally, not out loud, Am I lying here beside a naked woman?  It was a rhetorical question; the answer was yes.  So the paradox is this:  I’ve achieved success in certain enviable areas, such as our marriage and family.  And I wasn’t afraid of achieving these successes.  So what are the elements of this success that rendered it non-frightening?  I.e., why was I able to pursue this success without fear?  And how can I apply this ability to other goals – as well as using it as criteria to simply eliminate some goals.  I.e., perhaps I fear them precisely because they are not a good fit for me.

            Lee Cuesta

Today if you enter the search criteria, “cruising parent Baby Boomers,” in a Google search, this article occupies the first two positions in the results – out of 980,000.  Now that’s brand-building.

So this month, I invite you to visit my other website, Lee Cuesta Live, and check out my blog, along with Kathy’s article.  Permission is granted for this article to be printed and given to friends.  In addition, this article may be either reprinted or adapted, as long as the website is acknowledged as the source.

If you want to reach the affluent Baby Boomers, then don’t talk to them about retirement, but re-invention.  Their lifestyle will achieve a balance between meaningful work that provides a mission and purpose, along with times of relative disengagement to enjoy travel, family, discovery, and adventure.  Smith and Clurman write in their book, Generation Ageless, that the majority of Baby Boomers “will cycle themselves in and out of the workforce with work that is full-time when they’re doing it but that they do only part of the time.”

            Lee Cuesta

For instance, he recently informed his mother (my wife of 31 years) and me that both “CD” and “DVD” are to be pronounced as a single word.  He said that persons of my generation pronounce them as if periods still separate the initials, such as C.D. and D.V.D.  What’s even worse, we still occasionally mention V.H.S. 

So in a loving gesture to help us fit in the modern era, our son informed us that “CD” should be pronounced as a single, two-syllable word; and likewise, “DVD” should be pronounced as a single, three-syllable word.

Now, my wife is a well-compensated server in a well-known restaurant.  A while ago, she placed some of her requests regarding her availability in an e-mail to her manager.  Sometime later, her manager told her that those requests had come across as “demanding.”  The solution, according to our 14-year-old son, was to include some emoticons.  You know, some smiley faces.  “That’s why they were invented,” he said.

Actually, emoticons – which is a contraction of the words “emotion” and “icon” – were not invented recently; i.e., with the advent of e-mail.  They have been around since the 1800’s.  Wikipedia documents that “Typographical emoticons were published in 1881 by the U.S. satirical magazine Puck. … An emoticon,” says Wikipedia, “is a facial expression pictorially represented by punctuation and letters, usually to express a writer’s mood.”

But they have found a massive, cultural resurgence due to texting, e-mail, and chatting.  In fact, a couple weeks ago, I was chatting via G-mail with my previously youngest son, who is now 24.  At the beginning of our chat, we had a short, lighthearted interchange about emoticons.  And we discovered that at the bottom of the chat-box, there is another box where you can click to select the type and style of emoticon you want in your message at that moment.

However, later in our chat, we got into a deeper, heavier interchange about spiritual issues, and how my own spiritual condition has changed as I’ve gotten older.  Because of another commitment, our chat came to an abrupt end during this interchange.  And we both felt bad because the conversation was unresolved, and neither of us knew how the other felt about it.  Emoticons cannot replace true emotion, inflection and intention.

So not long after that, my son and his wife drove down to visit us (they live several hours away), and my son and I went to Starbucks together in order to bring closure to our chat.  And we were successful.  We just needed some actual “face-time,” not smiley-face time.

             Lee Cuesta
Also check out my blog at http://leecuestalive.com/?page_id=58.

          So perhaps it was appropriate that I discovered Charles Simic while riding on a TriMet bus in Portland, Oregon.  Posted inside the bus, at approximately head-height, were several placards containing excerpts from different poets.  This public-transit program was called something like “Poetry In Motion.”  This is the excerpt by Simic that I read:

Lovers hold hands in never-opened novels.
The page with a recipe for cucumber soup is missing.
A dead man writes of his happy childhood on a farm,
Of riding in a balloon over Lake Erie.

This excerpt is from his poem, USED  BOOK  STORE – the titles of his poems are always all-caps – which is published in his collection entitled, My Noiseless Entourage.

          Soon afterward, I found myself on an Oregon beach, with a cigar, reading through My Noiseless Entourage.  I immediately realized that I had to read the book backwards; that is, from back to front, the last poem first, in the order exactly reversed from that which is published.  Simic’s style demanded this; and I think he would appreciate that I read his collections this way.

          Also I discovered that many times Simic uses the title as the first line of his poem.  Here are a few examples:

OUR  OLD   NEIGHBOR

Who hasn’t been seen in his yard
Or sitting on his front porch
For what seems like forever, …

HE  HEARD WITH  HIS  DEAD  EAR

Your prayer.  The one you offered
On behalf of someone ailing.

SWEETEST

Little candy in death’s candy shop,
I gave your sugar a lick
When no one was looking,
Took you for a ride on my tongue
To all the secret places, …

All of the above are from My Noiseless Entourage, yet his prose poems don’t have titles at all in his collection entitled The World Doesn’t End (for which he won the Pulitzer Prize in 1990).  Instead, each prose poem is listed in the Table of Contents by the words of its first line.

And so to Charles Simic I dedicate the following, which was inspired by him.  I composed it on that dark night near the Canadian border after I had been entranced by his verse and followed him into some of his shadows and unlit corners.

MOURNING

A carpenter, handyman, craftsman

Now fifty years old

Toils in his solitary workshop

With hand-tools beside a house

          he may inherit someday.

Or drives his van to a grand house

          where he labors,

And then at night retires to

          his own apartment

          and his spouse.

But how do they occupy

          their evenings together?

It is better to get up in the morning

          and go to work again

Five and a half days every week.

                     Lee Cuesta

Be sure to check out my blog at www.leecuestalive.com.
Also this link:
http://www.ehow.com/how_4750375_compose-unforgettable-poem-valentine.html

I'm standing in First Amendment Plaza at Allen Hall.

Because we were in Eugene anyway for the Festival of Bands, my wife and I took a couple of hours that day to walk around the University of Oregon campus.  My wife said she didn’t remember the campus, and so I showed her the main spots where I used to hang out.  For example, Gerlinger Hall – where I just about had my eye gouged out by the tip of my instructor’s foil during a fencing class.

Since I graduated from U of O with a degree in journalism, the primary building for my studies was Allen Hall.  As we walked around this building, and took some photos, my wife asked me to express my feelings about being there – how it felt to return after so many years.  The first thing I told her was that it felt good to reflect on the fact that I completed it.  In other words, I graduated.  Many people who come here don’t.  They don’t graduate; they don’t finish it.

When I focus on something, with a mild form of obsession, I get the job done.  In fact, I

On the steps of Deady Hall, U of O's original building.

excelled in journalism school – at Allen Hall.  I was featured in The National Deans’ List. I received two academic scholarships.  I was awarded membership in Kappa Tau Alpha, the journalistic honor society.  I remember that the professors occasionally read my work in front of the class.

This is still true in my life.  When I exercise my concept of “controlled obsession,” I have a singular focus, and I get it done.  I still feel this way when I’m in the middle of an article: conducting interviews, writing the draft, editing, rewriting, submitting the final draft.

Unfortunately, this pattern has not been consistent in my life.  For instance:  Ostensibly because my career goal at that point was nonprofit work with the church, I didn’t immediately pursue a journalism job when I graduated.  Looking back, I’m not sure why I did it that way.  My goal, however, was to use my journalism training in the nonprofit work.

As a result of a summer internship in Greece between my junior and senior years at U of O, I realized that the need for my skills and training was much greater outside of the USA than within it.  I guess that’s one reason why I didn’t pursue a normal journalism job in the U.S.

But revisiting the campus – and Allen Hall – served as a reminder of my original goals and purpose.  I realized that I had not been fulfilling my true potential, the one for which I came to U of O in the first place, and graduated.

Somebody once gave me some constructive criticism that was extremely valuable.  He told me that I perceive myself to be successful because, like a high jumper, I make it across the bar.  But nobody else is impressed because they can see that the bar is far too low.

He encouraged me to set the “bar” much higher in my life and career, because he was convinced that I would still make it across.  I realized that I could and should set the bar much higher and, like Dick Fosbury, possibly set a record.

As I point out in the “sidebar” that follows this article, Dick Fosbury stills holds the Olympic and American high-jump records at 2.24 meters  (or 7 feet, 4.25 inches).  These records remain unbroken, which Fosbury set on October 20, 1968, at the Olympics in Mexico City, where he took the gold medal for high jump.  He was able to achieve this success due to the unique, backward style he developed, which came to be called the “Fosbury Flop.”

In my own life, achieving that success is a matter of surmounting the fear of success and learned helplessness, as well as utilizing controlled obsession.  These will be topics of future blog posts, as well as e-books, which will be free to download at this website.

For now, I am seeking to fulfill my original goals and purpose, which my personal criterion summarizes:  Accomplishing what otherwise would not get done unless I do it.  Part of achieving this might involve recognizing and embracing my own unique, backward style – like Dick Fosbury.  And always setting the bar higher.

Lee Cuesta

Outside of Gerlinger Hall ...

... and inside, where I trained and practiced my fencing.

For example, every article that I’ve had published in InSite magazine has required a sidebar.  So this is a sidebar that accompanies not only the two-part blog post that follows, but also the one that will precede this.

I wanted you to see this photo of me “tail-gating” outside of Autzen Stadium in Eugene, Oregon, during the Festival of Bands 2010.  On top of the Coleman cooler, I have a single burner attached to a one-pound propane tank, which I’m using to heat up some chili and beef stew.  Several other band parents walked by and said they’d be back when it was ready, but they never returned.

Anyway, Autzen Stadium provides an athletic backdrop that made me think of an Olympic Gold Medalist named Dick Fosbury.  Although Autzen Stadium is at University of Oregon (my alma mater), Fosbury graduated from Oregon State University.  But beyond that difference, there are some intriguing similarities between Fosbury’s life and mine.  Like me, he was born in Portland, Oregon.  He is a Baby Boomer, like me.  Then, also like me, as a youngster with his family, he moved to Medford, Oregon.  He graduated from Medford High School in 1965, where he had first started experimenting with a new high jumping technique.  Living in Medford, Oregon, in those days, we definitely knew about Dick Fosbury.  When we did the high jump in PE class, we all tried the Fosbury Flop.  Fosbury revolutionized the high jump by introducing his back-first technique, which became known as the “Fosbury Flop.”  Almost all high jumpers now use this technique.  With it, he won a gold medal at the 1968 Olympics in Mexico.  (I also lived in Mexico City for a while, and I wrote about the 1968 Mexico City Olympics in my novel.)  In fact, at the 1968 Olympics he set high jump records that still remain unbroken.  Dick Fosbury was inducted into the USA Track & Field Hall of Fame in 1981.  He won the following awards due to his innovative style:

Records Held
Olympic Record: High Jump – 2.24 m (October 20, 1968 – )
American Record: High Jump – 2.24 m (October 20, 1968 – )

Championships
1968 Olympics: High Jump – 2.24 m (1st)
1969 AAU: High Jump (2nd)
1969 NCAA: High Jump (1st)

He was elected to the U.S. Olympic Hall of Fame in 1992.

As I sat watching the literally day-long competition, I jotted down some observations, thoughts and questions on a scrap of paper that I always keep in my pocket just for this purpose. My predominant question was this:

What is the real-world value of this activity for the multitude of hours that have been invested in it?  I mean, this is a 7.5  to 8.5 minute pageant in three movements on a football field.  Where else in the world will any of these kids ever put on a uniform (i.e., a costume), play a musical instrument, and march in perfect, synchronized coordination with a large group of people?  This is something that no other big-brain mammal would ever conceive of doing.  (Or is this what dolphins do when they’re swimming together in a school?)  And yet, as evidenced by the participation and the spectators, this activity fulfills a valid, peculiar niche in society.  In fact, I felt the powerful emotion of a common affinity – we’re all here for a common purpose – like the feeling in the crowd at a NASCAR race, I imagine.

Are there marching band scholarships available from the colleges and universities??  Maybe that’s part of the real-world value.

At the Festival of Bands 2010, I was able to see the performances of both my alma maters in one day – not only the University of Oregon Marching Band, but also Sunset High School, who won everything in their division!  And I myself was in the Sunset marching band when I was in high school, but that was before the days of competitions.

After at least seven hours watching these performances, it begins to feel like I’m seeing the same group over and over again, just with a change of costumes and flags. And what’s the fascination with girls twirling, throwing and catching white, artificial rifles?

(To view Tigard High School’s award-winning performance at the 2010 Fessstival of Bands, click on this link.)

Here is my answer.

A couple weeks after the competition in Eugene, I was in a large, home improvement store.  I saw a youth (accompanied by his parents) wearing a jacket with the embroidery, “Sunset High School Marching Ensemble.”  I asked him if he’d participated in the Festival of Bands at Autzen Stadium.  He said yes.  And I told him how much I’d enjoyed Sunset’s award-winning performance.

I told him that my son had performed with Tigard High School, and then the youth’s mother said how much she and all the Sunset parents enjoyed Tigard’s performance.  In fact, she said that she was going to send a letter to the directors of Tigard’s marching band to tell them how much the Sunset parents thought that Tigard’s performance excelled in entertainment and creativity.  I realized that this was a very significant compliment – coming from the band who won everything in their division.

For most of my life, I faltered with the concept that what I should be doing was either: a) something I didn’t enjoy doing, or b) something that was for others, not for myself.  It was the whole “self-denial” thing to an extreme.  But was it misguided?  If I’m denying my self, then am I really fulfilling what I was put here for?

Now that my life is half over, I am beginning to practice the idea that I should pursue what I enjoy, and that will likewise lead to success.  It’s a weird feeling – like, life can actually be fun, rather than the daily chores.  It may seem peculiar – to others, to the bystanders – like watching a marching band; but it’s the right thing.

The marching band has taught me an important lesson.  The students participate because of sincere enjoyment.  They learn the value of commitment, perseverance and dedication despite the extreme effort.  They learn about working as a coordinated team.  All this is essential in the “real world.”  Indeed, the massive coordination of everybody is absolutely awesome:  not just the band, but also the additional personnel required for getting on and off the field quickly; and, of course, the performance itself.  And this massive coordination and commitment results in recognition and praise from peers (i.e., Sunset’s marching band).  This is what is required to obtain success.  That is real-world value.

(To view Sunset High School’s complete performance, click on this link.)