If you’re going to be extraordinary at ANYTHING in life, you’ll have to risk something – and it’s going to be scary and NOT comfortable.
[gap height=”15″][gap height=”15″]Sylvester Stallone and I have much in common. We’re both Italian. We both found ourselves completely broke in our 20s. We’ve both found a way to dig ourselves out of that hole and do something with our lives.
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Stallone’s life mirrors that of the man he portrayed in his best-known movie role, “Rocky.” I think that movie is one of the most popular of all-time because so many people can relate to it – including me. So many of us find ourselves broke, just needing a break in life. And there’s a simple formula in the movie that shows ANYONE how to have success in life (it’s not just a boxing movie!)
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The Three Steps in the formula are dream, risk and persist. Let’s look at each one a little more closely.
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No. 1: Dream
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The first theme in “Rocky” is that you’ve got to start with a dream, whatever it may be – big or small, realistic or unrealistic … you need to have an idea of what you want to achieve.
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Stallone is a great example of running against the wind and going against the odds for a dream. He couldn’t get an acting job when he first started out, so he did the hard work of writing screenplays and scripts, learning about cameras and doing everything related to an acting career.
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If you identify the “space” your dream is in but can’t yet do that ONE thing, just start getting around that space and doing things related or near to what you really want to do.
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No. 2: Risk
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The second theme of “Rocky” is that you’ve got to be willing to risk getting knocked out in order to pursue your dream. There are no guarantees life will go how you plan or want it to go. But if you never risk going after your dream, you will for sure NEVER get it.
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“Rocky” is about taking a shot, swinging for the fences. Life throws a wall at you and you stand up to it. If you’re going to be extraordinary at ANYTHING in life, you’ll have to risk something – and it’s going to be scary and NOT comfortable.
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For Stallone, the producers at the studio loved the script he wrote for Rocky Balboa and offered $360,000 just for the script, with the condition that he wouldn’t play Rocky … because they wanted a big Hollywood star. That $360K was tempting to a guy who had, literally, NO money. And Stallone knew HE was the guy to play the part of Rocky. He wouldn’t settle!
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In life, it can be risky to not settle – it’s risky to go after it ALL. But I know Stallone wouldn’t have been happy if he had played it safe and settled for the $360K – which he really needed at the time – in order to let someone else play HIS character.
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You must be confident in your abilities and what you want if you’re going to risk big.
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No. 3: Persist
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What people admire about the character Rocky is that he goes the distance. He stood up, took a shot, and went all the way with it. Don’t quit on your dream! Know that nothing worth having is easy.
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Many people say they’re going to go 10X, become a millionaire blah, blah, blah … but when it’s time to train, they don’t want to put in the time. Don’t start down the road of success only to quit.
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Life and business are a sprint, but also a marathon. The movie studio told Stallone they wanted his film, but not HIM. He didn’t quit, but was persistent – HE was the only guy who could play Rocky.
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Opportunities will pass you by, just because you are a “nobody.” Doors will be shut on you. Can you persist?
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