Fifteen-plus years ago I started working professionally as a Forrest Gump impersonator/look-alike/tribute artist. I used the expression ‘gump-like’ thousands of times to describe a person, one of their attributes, or to define an interaction that occurred between myself and another.
Forrest Gump had many admirable and notable character traits. Forrest was memorable. Being gump-like is being memorable.
Gump-like is being simple.
Simple as in straightforward, plain thinking.
Simple as in non-nuanced.
Simple as in genuine.
Simple as in direct.
Simple as open and honest.
Forrest wasn’t a deep thinker … but he was a thinker.
Viewing things simply as they are as opposed to searching for hidden meaning is being gump-like.
Acting simply with initiative and common sense is being gump-like.
Interacting reliably and with simple graciousness is being gump-like.
How simple is your thinking?
How simply do you act?
Are your interactions simple and sincere?
If someone said, “You are ‘gump-like’!” … would you take it as a compliment? I do.
Are you choosing to live a gump-like life?
Next Blog Title: Defining Gump-like (part 3)
Next Blog Date: December 19, 2011