Only a few more days until Christmas.
This is the time of year I love watching holiday movies. I have a lot of favorites and most of the time I just watch them with thoughts of wonderful memories of spending time with my family - but this year I noticed that many of the lesson taught in these holidays movies could be applied to my business.
Many of the holiday movies on list teach business lessons that we should apply to our creative business lives.
Well this week I'm going to count down 6 Survive the Holiday Business Lessons: Starting Today with Lesson 1 from my favorite holiday movie of all times: It's a Wonderful Life!
image source:dvdbeaver.com
Lesson 1:
It’s a Wonderful Life! Never Underestimate the Power of Tribes
It's a Wonderful Life" is one of the most memorable Christmas movies of all time- starring Jimmy Stewart and Donna Reed.It’s the ultimate feel-good movie.
If you are not familiar with the movie - Here’s the quick lowdown:
George Bailey, played by Stewart, is on the verge of collapse. His company is on the verge of bankruptcy, although he has a house full of adorable kids and a gorgeous wife (Reed), there’s never enough money to go around. George decides his family and business would be better off without him. On the brink of suicide, he’s saved by an angel, Clarence.
Clarence the angel shows George what his life would be like if he’d never existed, and it isn't pretty. By seeing all the people he’s touched, George realizes that he has created a strong network of love and support – he’s created a tribe. And it’s this tribe that pulls together at the end of the movie to give back to George, helping him out of his current difficulties.
"Never Underestimate the Power of Tribes"
If you didn't know- your tribe can, quite literally, save your life. The lesson here is... you should be building not only a viable business, but a community – one that supports and cares for each other. If you’re just out to make a buck, don’t be surprised if no one leaps to defend you or lend you a helping hand when things go bad.
Guess what? Your PayPal account could be frozen. You could get hacked, robbed, or plagiarized. It can happen.
But if you have friends like George’s, you’ll have a whole team of folks on your side. But one thing to remember: George had friends he’d created just by being a good guy, doing the right thing at the right time, not worrying about what was in it for him. He stood up for what was right and shook hand after hand, even when it cost him personally.
He didn’t build this community by selling junk or spamming everyone. He did it the old fashioned way: By caring. Buliding a real authenitc relationship never goes out of style.
Tommorrow's next Lesson:
All Gifts Are to Be Honored from the holiday movie -The Little Drummer Boy
________________________________________________________________________________________
Looking for more solid tips on business ideas, internet & social marketing, and personal branding? Check out the School of Creative Business free email newsletter, Creative Business Ideas. SIGN UP HERE
