7 Secrets of Success From Watching Rocky (really!)
By Zoe Routh
I don't even like boxing, but I got to tell you I learned a lot from
Rocky and Sylvester Stallone about creating your own success. In
anticipation of the 6th sequel in the Rocky series, 'Rocky Balboa',
my husband and I watched all five Rocky movies (one day we even
watched four in a row!) to get up to speed with development of the
character and his story. This is quite basic: underdog hero
experiences tough times, receives a challenge that questions his
manhood and sense of what is 'right' and 'wrong', intense training
scenes showing incredible physique, and a close, tough fighting
scene with a feel good 'victory' for Rocky - the 'people's hero'.
It's not the story line or the
films themselves that are as much an inspiration as Sylvester's
Stallone's own story of rags to riches as a punk, nobody actor and
screenwriter to multimillionaire writer and director of one the most
successful film series.
With $106 left in his bank
account, Stallone offered his script of 'Rocky' to various
producers. He wanted to sell the script and star in the lead role.
The producers rejected him as the lead but offered him $50 000 for
the script. They did not think he was a bankable star -too ugly, too
short, and talked too funny to be a good leading actor. They wanted
to cast Ryan O'Neal, who enjoyed boxing, or Burt Reynolds or Paul
Newman or Steve McQueen, or Al Pacino.
$50 000 was a lot of money
considering he had so little cash and a pregnant wife to look after.
However old Sly stuck to his guns, and refused to take the deal
without the lead role. The bids for the script kept going up, but
without the offer of the leading role. Stallone says of the
negotiations,
"I made a simple declaration to
my agent and whoever wanted to hear, that I would sooner burn the
script, that I would sooner bury the script, that I would sooner put
the script out to sea and blow it up than to have anyone else play
Rocky. "If the price went up to half a million, if the price went up
to a million, 'I said, 'No sale. ", Finally, the producers swung
over to my side and used their influence to convince United Artists
to take me on. The script went to Arthur Krim, Eric Pleskow, Mike
Medavoy, and all the upper echelon of the United Artists
organization and finally it came down, the word from above, that it
was a "go" for one million dollars. Not a penny more, not a penny
less. One million dollars!"
Rocky then won the Academy Best
Picture award in 1976.
Ok so how does this help you on
your own personal development journey you may well be asking? It's
not as far-fetched as it may seem at first. Regardless of whether
you like Rocky or not, there are some valued lessons from Rocky and
old Sly about being the Director of your own Movie of Life.
1. Know that you are the Director
of your own Life Movie. When Stallone wrote Rocky, he wrote the role
for himself. It was his story and it was his role. There was no way
he was going to leave it for anyone else, even if the script was
buried for lack of buyers. His commitment went beyond temptation to
sell out - he had an unshakeable faith that this was the right thing
to do for himself and for his life. The universe rewarded his clear
and true intentions with massive rewards. For Stallone, it was never
about the money - it was about the expression of his life's passion.
Imagine for one moment you can
create your own world, just as Sylvester Stallone did in Rocky. This
is the truth that Stallone knew and you need to embrace too: you are
the DIRECTOR of your life. You ARE creating it every moment. You are
the scriptwriter, director, producer and actor in the Movie of your
Life. Many people however, are unconscious directors, believing that
life just happens; they believe that they are bit actors in someone
else's (God's? the government's? their parents'?) movie, with little
say on direction, content, and genre of the movie's production.
To understand that you are the
Director of your own Life Movie, you need to feel this conviction in
your bones like Stallone - you have to know at a cellular level that
you are in charge of the scripting, directing, production, and
execution of your own Life Movie.
It's time now for you to claim
your role as the Director of Your Life Movie and get on with living
the coolest version of your life.
2. Pick the genre for your Life
Movie. Let your passion be your guiding force. Stallone explains how
he discovered the passion that fueled his success. He searched his
feelings. He asked himself, "What did I really enjoy seeing up on
the screen? I enjoyed heroism. I enjoyed great love. I enjoyed
stories of dignity, of courage, of man's ability to rise above his
station and take life by the throat and not let go until he
succeeded." This was Rocky's story, and it was Stallone's too.
What do YOU wish to experience?
What do you enjoy? What are your favourite movies and why?
How would you describe your life
now? A tragedy? A comedy? An adventure? How would you like it to be
from now on?
Knowing the overall theme and
genre will guide you in the creative process.
3. Feelings make the blockbuster.
One of my employers once said, "if you can make them laugh and cry
in one movie, you've got a winner." Movies that are successful are
the ones that make you feel something deeply and strongly - whether
that is joy, terror, exhilaration, inspiration, sadness or any
combination of the above. A movie that plays your feelings like a
fiddle is one that captures the hearts and imagination of its
viewers.
Your life is like that too - it
is the feelings that make for a good time or not. You choose
experiences (consciously or not) that allow you to feel the whole
gamut of human emotions. This is what we are here on the planet to
do - to enjoy the ride of human feelings.
Sylvester Stallone was very clear
on what he wanted his viewers to experience when he wrote Rocky: he
wanted people to feel inspired by the little guy who triumphs
despite the odds. Some of the other emotions he wanted people to
experience were:
* Pathos - compassion for the
poor downtrodden hero
* Suspense - will he fight? Who
will he fight? How will he fight? Will he win?
* Inspiration -very funky music
and cool training sessions showing the most inhuman training regimen
- you try doing a one armed push up!
* Fear - will he get his face
pushed backward through a chair? Will he get brain damage?
* Exhilaration - Rocky triumphs
despite the odds, showing astonishing spirit and resilience
* Joy- Rocky wins and shares it
all with the woman he loves.
What feelings do you want to
experience in your Life Movie. Joy? Exhilaration? Freedom?
Creativity? Passion? Curiosity? Insight? Inspiration? Fear? Horror?
Pain? What have you experienced so far? Do you want more of the same
or something different?
4. Write the script. Knowing what
he wanted to experience at the movies and the types of feelings he
wanted viewers to feel, Stallone wrote the script to produce these
results.
Write your Life Movie script.
Pick a date in the future, maybe 5 years, or 10 years or 20 -
whatever feels like fun to you, and write a text of what has
happened in your Life Movie. Most important to include are the
feelings you experienced throughout. Joy, challenge, exhilaration -
write it all in vivid detail. Tell the story, put in plenty of
detail in vibrant colours, textures, characters, tastes, smells -
the more descriptive you can make the script, the easier it will be
for it to translate in to reality.
Review the script once you have
written it. How does it feel when you read it? Do you experience all
the range of emotions you want? Does it feel exciting? Does it sound
like a life worth living? If you have a resounding 'yes' as answer
to each of those questions, then you are on a winner.
5. Get the music right. Nothing
brings to life a script more than the music. There was no
coincidence that 'Eye of the Tiger' featured heavily in one of the
Rocky movies. This was strong, heart-pounding music that makes you
want to jump up and run up a big flight of stairs and do crazy
upside down sit-ups. Check any Rocky fan's I pod, and they've got
Eye of the Tiger on there for their gym workout. Pick music that
evokes the feelings of your Life Movie. Play it often - in the car,
at home, at the gym. This will keep you plugged in to the creation
and production of your Life Movie.
6. Recruit a production team.
Very few movies are ever made just by one person. You need a whole
team. You need people on your team that are in line with your
vision, theme, and passion. If they are not a match, dump them from
your crew.
Check to see if you have the
right crew:
Friends that support your goals
or are on similar paths
Family that is as excited as you
are about the possibilities of your Life Movie
A mentor to serve as a model -
one that has done a similar movie and achieved the results you want
A coach to guide you through the
hurdles and setbacks and to point out how to improve (do I have to
throw in the obvious Rocky coach, "Mickey" as the allusion here?!)
Specialists in any technical area
to bring out your best - business coach, accountant, financial
planner, nutritionist, massage therapist, personal trainer, image
designer, travel agent.
The crew is an incredibly
important component to the successful production and delivery of
your Life Movie. Make sure you get the right people on board.
7. Enjoy it. Creating your Life
Movie should be a joyful process. It is not just about getting to
the end to press 'play'. The real joy is in the creative process,
the delight and surprises and miracles that occur along the way as
you commit to creating the masterpiece that is your life.
For more Stallone and Rocky
wisdom, go to
http://www.sylvesterstallone.com
Copyright 2007 Zoe Routh, Inner
Compass
