In the pursuit of Entrepreneurial Moviespiration!

Movies have always thought us and the lessons learnt from them have always made great influence. Also its fact, which things you learn from movies remain in your head for a longer period of time than what you learn something from reading a book.

These days movie genre’s focusing entrepreneurship has also been evolving. When you examine these movies with a more critical eye, there are numerous tactics, strategies, and methods of doing business – and doing business well – to be learned and put into practice.

1. The Wolf of Wall Street (2013)

This movie is based on true life story of Jordan Belfort, played by Leonardo Dicaprio about his rise to a wealthy stock-broker and his involvement in crime, corruption and the federal government.

Entrepreneurial Lessons from the film:

Simplify your style. Jordan Belfort had a team of uneducated individuals. He could develop a successful team from them only because he simplified his style and directed them in lay man’s language; just the way an ordinary person could understand.

Know your audience. Belfort knew his audience very well. He understood his investors and knew which kinds of stocks would attract their attention. Similarly, if you develop clear understanding of who your audience is and what their needs are, you can develop a clear strategy for meeting their needs.

Set clear goals for yourself. Belfort knew he wanted to get rich; so he set clear goals for himself. Same way, you also need to know what you want from your business. Because the more specific you be, greater would be the likelihood that you will reach your goals.

Be your best salesman: You’re an entrepreneur, so you should need to know very well how to sell yourself or your product. You should be presentable enough just like how Belfort made his team present themselves because in current market the way you present is all that matters. Being confident gentleman/gentlewoman front of your customers should be your primary goal. Because when customers see the confidence in you, the trust is gained and your deal is cracked.

Provide best training to your employees. Belfort was clever enough in training his staff to sound as intelligent and capable as possible- even if their backgrounds were as plain as could be. Similar way, you should take the time and effort to train your employees in the best way possible. This investment of your time will perhaps reward you manifold times in future.

Gather a loyal team. To run a successful business, having a loyal team is very much important; loyal members who might stay with your business no matter what. So you should include members in your team who have the common goal of helping you achieve your business goals. And the best way to retain them is by giving them growth opportunities and treating them as they’re irreplaceable.

Keep trying. Jordan Belfort is a perfect example of imperfection. His startup went bankrupt-but that still didn’t deter him. It instead gave him the resolve to succeed on Wall Street.

Dream big – and look through a realistic lens. Perhaps the biggest lesson an entrepreneur can learn from The Wolf of Wall Street is that dreams are the sparks for business. And when you start looking for ways to make your dreams come true, use sound, honest, and responsible ways to make that happen.

2. Pirates of Silicon Valley

Being an original 1999 American made for television biographical film, Pirates of Silicon Valley is about the men who made the world of technology what it is today, their struggles during college, the founding of their companies, and the ingenious actions they took to build up the global corporate empires of Apple Computer Corporation and Microsoft Inc.

Entrepreneurial Lessons from the film:

Innovation is the key. In present day competition, it’s best for entrepreneurs to be constantly open for innovation. Today, Innovation is the key. If you’re open for innovation, you make for yourself a place in the market otherwise you need to exit. Highlighting the fallacies of big companies like Xerox, Hewlett Packard and IBM who failed to cope up with innovation; this movie enlightens future aspirants to be always open for innovation.

Don’t curb your ego. In order to become a great entrepreneur, one must have ego within oneself, though it must not in any way be demolishing. History of both Gates and Jobs is a proof of this. A good entrepreneur must have ego but at the same time, he must not be reluctant to find new ways and means to stop his ego from dominating him. This is what will build up your personality and make you stand out of the crowd.

Be competitive. Steve Jobs was very ardent competitor. Right from his early days, he used to consider IBM as his competitor. He believed in himself, worked towards his dream and finally got himself ahead of IBM with his Apple.

Follow your Passion. Mr. Jobs always loved doing something in the field of computers. Age was never a barrier for him. Most of his youth, he kept exploring, learning and deciphering new things from some pieces of scratch. Even after getting rejected many times, facing failures again and again, that couldn’t deter him from chasing his dreams. He believed in his dream and loved what he did, that’s the reason success was rewarded to him by getting topmost position in the company which had earlier rejected him. This is perhaps, a biggest lesson to entrepreneurs. An entrepreneur must love his work and be ready to give away anything for achieving his desires.

3. The Social Network (2010)

This American film depicts the story of Harvard student Mark Zuckerberg who creates the social networking site that would become known as Facebook, but is later sued by two brothers who claimed he stole their idea, and the co-founder who was later squeezed out of the business.

Entrepreneurial Lessons from the film:

It’s not about who has an idea but who can execute it.There’s a phrase which says, “There are no original ideas.” Also, it’s a belief that all human beings are tapped into the “Universal Mind” and that we all have access to the same ideas and inspiration. So it’s all about who is listening and who takes the plunge to pull it off.
However, the writer behind “The Social Network,Mr. Aaron Sorkin, says that no one knows the exact truth of what happened between Zuckerberg, the Winklevai and Saverin. But the truth lies in the outcome. Facebook did happen because Mark Zuckerberg took the initiative. He had the confidence and belief in the idea; worked towards it and thus made it happen. That’s what other entrepreneurs need to do. Ideas are all around. All you need to do is chase them and work towards accomplishing those.

Change can happen fast.The phase “from idea to execution” doesn’t have to be forever. If you think you have an amazing idea which no one else has tried, start working towards it right now. What if some other person gets your idea and all your hard work goes waste. Changes can happen fast. All you need to do is brace yourself, preparing a plan and execute it as soon as possible rather than waiting for the perfect moment to start.

‘Steve Jobs’ and The Aviator are two other movies which inspire us.

4. Steve Jobs (2015)

‘Steve Jobs’ being an underrated film takes us behind to the scenes of the digital revolution, to showcase the discoveries of tech trailblazer, Apple co-founder Mr. Steve Jobs. This story then unfolds backstage at three iconic product launches, ending in 1998 with the launch of the iMac.

5. The Aviator (2004)

When it comes to innovators, very few have soared as high and fell as hard as the legendary Howard Hughes. This 2004-film Aviator is an American biopic depicting the early years of legendary director and aviator Howard Hughes’ career from the late 1920s to the mid-1940s.

These are just five of the films that provide valuable lessons for entrepreneurs, and more are released each year. It seems like some of the best movies have worthwhile concepts that apply in the real world.

What’s your favorite movie targeted towards entrepreneurs? Do let us know in the comments section below:

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