Have you ever walked into a movie theatre and came out feeling like a different person?

Fired-up and forever changed by someone else’s story on the silver screen.

In the midst of this global pandemic and economic downturn, what are the best films any business dreamer could watch to help lift entrepreneurial spirits?

If you’re a business leader, CEO, start-up entrepreneur or planning your next big career move, an unforgettable movie experience can go a long way towards illuminating your path to future success. Great movies offer much more than entertainment value. They open the windows of your mind to new perspectives and fresh thinking. They’re like a pair of jumper cables that re-charge the battery pack of ideas you’ve been carrying around in your heart. They give voice to your dreams. The ones that refuse to be silenced and put away.

Last week, a small business owner asked a simple enough question about entrepreneurial vision. He wanted to know in a practical sense how having a bigger vision applies to creating economic wealth and fulfilling a deeper sense of purpose. Without thinking, I recommended he watch one of the movies listed below to see if he could see himself in one of the characters.

And then it hit me.

Like that time, Jerry Maguire spoke from his heart and told Dorothy Boyd … “you complete me”.

If you consider yourself to be a business leader, lifting lessons from Hollywood is a technique you can use to remind yourself of what it takes to solve the inevitable list of problems you face along the way. And certain movies have the power to speak to your own truth and bring into focus some of the very real issues and opportunities you see in your own industry.

Get your popcorn ready, settle into your favorite recliner and enjoy scenes from the Top 5 Business Movies Ever Made on this segment of Leaders & Legends.

5. JERRY MAGUIRE (1996)

In an increasingly cynical, skeptical and frightened world, it’s possible this Cameron Crowe movie is more relevant than ever. A high-powered executive is fired from a successful company that cares more about profits, fame and ego than the clients they’ve been hired to serve. The main character played by Tom Cruise puts his own professional neck on the line for the sake of his personal values. Waking up in a cold sweat, he is convinced that companies can serve a higher calling with meaning and purpose. They can refuse to engage in the all-out pursuit of profits over people. Armed with only one talented, but troubled client (Cuba Gooding Jr.) and feeling the burden of responsibility for his sole employee who also happens to be a single mom (and love interest, Renee Zellwegger), Jerry overcomes numerous setbacks and self-doubts that accompany anyone who dares to follow their dream.

What Jerry Maguire illustrates is that for any business to survive and thrive, you need to start with one really good customer who is also willing to go to the wall for you – because you were willing to go there first. As Harvard professor Theodore Levitt outlined in his famous 1960 essay, Marketing Myopia, the real purpose of a business is not to make money. That’s a result. Turning a profit is necessary, but it does not define overall purpose. The real purpose of a business is to create and keep a customer. By the end of the movie, it’s clear that Jerry’s core values of integrity and service before self will generate many long-term customers and financial success.

As you watch the film, ask yourself how this applies to your own industry and the cast of characters swimming through it. Only you know if you’re surrounded by swarms of “sharks in suits”, hacks, pretenders and others looking for the easy way out. Only you can determine whether you’ve sold your soul for bags of silver. Only you know how and when to separate yourself from the pack of wolves and whether you need to dream another dream.

Key Takeaways:

Let your vision and values guide you. Even if those principles create short-term pain and a lot of inconvenience, they are the foundation for long-term success.
Understand the real purpose of a business: To create & keep a customer. Down the road, that customer will tell another and so on.
When you follow your heart and sincerely care about serving other people, plenty of money, meaning and “kwan” will follow.

Best Quote: “I love him! I love him for the man he wants to be. And I love him for the man he almost is”. DOROTHY BOYD

Best Scene: Play With Heart.

When Jerry Maguire confronts Rod Tidwell, his one and only client and has a fierce, in-your-face conversation about what it takes to succeed.

4. THE FOUNDER (2016)

This historical biopic of fast-food tycoon Ray Kroc is a perfect illustration of how every entrepreneur struggles with a simple, yet powerful question: Do you own the business or does the business own you?. The Founder, starring Michael Keaton and directed by John Lee Hancock, brings you to ground-zero of the McDonald’s fast-food empire and tells the story of how a travelling milkshake salesmen saw genius in the McDonald brothers operation. No matter how you feel about Kroc’s character and business ethics, the movie clearly illustrates the difference in big picture thinking between a successful local operator focused on service excellence and a visionary who saw the value in strategic marketing and creating a larger-than-life brand. As Kroc once said, “I didn’t invent the hamburger. I just took it more seriously than anyone else."

When you watch The Founder, notice the human dynamics between business partners and how lack of a unified vision creates issues that are eventually solved by buyouts and lawyers. Also watch how the McDonald brothers and Ray both used their different strengths to solve customer problems and deliver on quality and service while achieving growth. Pay close attention to how operational details are systemized to perfection in a way that Michael Gerber explores further in his all-time classic, The E-Myth Revisited. As you reflect on your own situation, also be mindful of the long-term thinking required to create a sustainable business model along with a visual identity that builds brand equity and value over time. Although you can’t help but feel for the cards that were dealt to Dick and Maurice McDonald, you also can’t deny the fact that McDonald’s became the #1 fast-food brand in the world – a testimonial to the visionary genius of Ray Kroc.

Key Takeaways:

Are you thinking big enough and far enough forward? Your vision should extend well beyond your local area code.
Develop a signature brand identity and internal systems that sets you apart in the same manner as the “Golden Arches”.
Understand what business you are really in, which became clear when Kroc discovered he wasn’t in the hamburger business at all.

Best Quote: “Mac, I'm the president and C.E.O. of a major corporation with land holdings in 17 states. You run a burger stand in the desert. I'm national. You're f**king local”.  RAY KROC

Best Scene: The Business Scene.

When Ray Kroc runs into cash flow issues with his rapidly growing franchise system, he gets taught a visionary lesson by Harry Sonneborn; the man who will go down in history as the individual who helped McDonald’s understand what business they were really in. Real estate.

3. ERIN BROKOVICH (2000)

This gripping legal and personal drama illuminates the true story of a single mother of three and her unlikely win against corporate bigwigs Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E). Directed by Steven Soderbergh, the main character. portrayed by Julia Roberts, is the ultimate self-starter. With no formal training, but plenty of chutzpah, Erin Brockovich creates a job for herself as a legal researcher for a boutique law firm in the small town of Hinkley, California. When her digging and sweat equity reveals hundreds of serious health issues experienced by nearby residents is linked to pollution being spread by PG&E, she spearheads the legal proceedings against a $28 billion corporation and ultimately wins. In may respects her name has become a verb. To “Erin Brockovich something” is to vigorously advocate for a cause without giving up.

Throughout the film, notice the impact of a growth mindset. One woman armed with heart, bravado, high heels and a mini-skirt takes down an entire company populated by highly educated people who are still judged as being valuable to society than someone like her. The most significant difference between Brockovich and her status-seeking adversaries has nothing to do with education or training. Which is what makes it a Top 5 movie for any business leader, CEO or entrepreneur. It’s a leadership movie that takes place in a legal setting dealing with serious environmental issues.

Key Takeaways:

The word “NO” is never the final answer. Whenever you hear the word, “NO”, your job is to find a way to “YES”.
No matter how impressive their resume or elegant their boardroom, don’t let the big guys scare you.
Call out the phonies on their intellectual B.S. Be the voice that speaks up in the meeting when the real issues are on the line.

Best Quote: “Not personal? That is my time, my sweat and my time away from my kids. If that's not personal I don't know what is”. ERIN BROCKOVICH

Best Scene: The Lame-Ass Offer.

Observe Erin's negotiation techniques and how she makes her points in a way that forces her adversaries to see things differently. This is the meeting that sets the stage for the litigation to follow and a settlement fee of $333 million dollars paid by PG & E to compensate victims due to their callous neglect and pollution of the community’s ground water.

2. MONEYBALL (2011)

Let’s be clear. Moneyball is not a baseball movie. On the surface, it looks like one, but while the Oakland A’s and combative general manager Billy Beane provide the backdrop, this film represents something else altogether. On the one hand it’s a penetrating look at the emotional turmoil experienced by visionary leaders determined to reinvent business models and disrupt status quo. However, it also reflects the internal struggles, siloed thinking and open warfare inside organizations when people stubbornly cling to the way things have always been done. Directed by Bennett Miller with a writing assist from Aaron Sorkin, the central character (played by Brad Pitt) has been tasked to assemble a competitive team in the face of baseball’s changing economics, escalating salaries, cultural resistance to change while under the constraints of a limited budget.

Moneyball reveals how the character of Billy Beane comes to terms with his own failed athletic past and experiments with a completely different approach to evaluate potential players. Guided by his own instincts that traditional scouting methods were deeply flawed, Beane adopts radical ideas from baseball outsiders; an untested, data-driven approach to analyzing potential talent that allows Oakland to level the playing field and achieve incredible results with a near storybook ending. For too long, many business pundits believed the entire point of the movie was to show how the use of data justifies every decision. My challenge to you as a viewer is to look beyond the obvious and refuse to blindly worship at the altar of mathematics. How do you respond if bigger, better data is not the solution to every business problem that you will ever encounter? What if you discover Moneyball’s real value is found in the insights it offers with respect to identifying the very real problems faced by an organization, the willingness to think and tinker outside traditional parameters and the thick-skin required of a leader when the critics start howling? Just like the Oakland A’s couldn’t compete on the same financial footing with big market teams, Moneyball demonstrates that the playing field called business isn’t always fair and when the odds are stacked against you, risk-taking and inventiveness can take you a long way.

Key Takeaways:

Before you can solve a business problem with clarity and intelligence, you need to know with certainty what the real problem is.
A well-trained eye outside the organization often sees things a lot more clearly than industry veterans enslaved by the rusty chains of their own dogma.
Real leadership comes from a sense of purpose and in Billy Beane’s case from painful past experiences.

Best Quote: “I made one decision in my life based on money. And I swore I would never do it again”. BILLY BEANE

Best Scene: What’s The Problem?

Billy’s boardroom conversation with his veteran scouting staff may remind you of meetings that you have been a part of. See if you can draw the parallels between the well-worn cliches used by the crusty old guys in this profession and the resistance that occurs when someone dares to challenge conventional wisdom.

1. JOY (2015)

This stands as the true-to-life, entrepreneurial equivalent to Rocky. The story of Joy Mangano begins in a rundown house on Long Island as she deals with the daily chaos of being a divorced mom raising three kids in close quarters while stepping on eggshells around her divorced parents and half-sister. Drowning in family drama, the central character played by Jennifer Lawrence faces a bleak future and only the words of her favorite grandmother keep her childhood dreams alive. Written and directed by David Russell, this tale of heartaches and hard decisions is one that any business leader can relate to. At her lowest point, in the middle of more frustrating family nonsense, Joy picks herself up from the mat, reaches back into her imagination and finally experiences that all-consuming epiphany so familiar to every entrepreneur.

In Joy Mangano’s case it was an idea for a revolutionary cleaning product called the Miracle Mop. As you watch, notice how the unique qualities of the invention itself offered no guarantee of financial success. What you will see is how no product or service sells itself completely on its own. It needs a real human being willing to go out in front of the line and beat the sales drum required to form the parade. Despite all the obstacles and complications from family members who profess to love her, Joy throws everything and then some into making her innovative business idea a commercial reality. When a tiny crack of opportunity shines through the doorway opened by QVC and the character played by Bradley Cooper, Joy steps way outside her comfort zone and becomes the television spokesperson for her product. With unbridled passion, unwavering determination and persistent follow-through, Joy Mangano became a multimillionaire with hundreds of patents to her name. With humility and a ton of hard work, this motion picture shows its never too late to start something from scratch. Real leaders always find a way to solve their most pressing problems, no matter how many cash flow issues, partnership disputes or family betrayals you run into.

Key Takeaways:

The most important role in any company is the one played by the #1 salesperson. Without someone willing to beat the sales drum, there are no products to make or revenues to pay the salaries of the other employees to do any of the work.
Many people don’t want to see you succeed. Even those closest to you, including members of your own family. Get used to it.
Never, ever give up on your dreams. For real entrepreneurs, the word “can’t” does not exist in their vocabulary.

Best Quote: “I don’t want to end up like my family. I have to do things myself, once and for all”.  JOY MANGANO

Best Scene: Selling the Mop Idea

Joy clearly demonstrates how every top salesperson learns to overcome the inevitable setbacks and rejections that are required to build some backbone. This scene is one of many wakeup calls that shows how entrepreneurship is not a magical fairy-tale land filled with sunshine, rainbows and lollipops. Most days are 16 to 17-hour marathons filled with trials and tribulations that no ordinary person would put up with. Which is what makes Joy such an extraordinary story.

With each of the Top 5 Business Movies Ever Made…

You will notice three consistent themes reflected and rooted in each film we’ve showcased.

#1. To be in business is to understand and accept that you are in the business of building relationships. The so-called “soft skills” of listening and the art of conversation are paramount. No matter how rough around the edges some of the main characters may have been, they all displayed qualities of empathy and how seeking to understand someone else can carry you a long way.

#2. In addition to being able to sell their ideas and share their vision, the real job for any business leader is to solve problems. Customer problems, financial problems, partnership and employee problems. Product and service-delivery problems. Each day when you wake up, you can be certain another set of new problems will arise for you to confront and conquer.

#3. No matter how self-made the heroes are in these stories, not one of them did it alone. Each one had a person they could count on standing in their corner; opening doors and offering support through thick and thin. Just as Batman had Robin and Rocky Balboa relied on Adrian and Mickey, no champion emerges without one or two other special people riding shotgun and helping you do things you could never accomplish on your own. The characters of Dorothy Boyd, Rod Tidwell, Harry Sonneborn, Ed Masry, George the neighbor, Peter Brand and QVC exec, Neil Walker all play pivotal roles in the protagonist’s success journey. Whether it’s through mentorship or real friendship and being willing to jump into the foxhole while live ammunition is firing, these are the kind of people business warriors need to surround themselves with in order to fight the new battles that surface each day.

How much further can you polish your sales and storytelling skills? Is there more you can do to elevate your ability to problem-solve and seek new solutions to recurring problems? Is there something in these characters and their stories that remind you of the dreams you once had and the greatness that still lives inside you?

The world is anxiously awaiting your next move.

Millions are ready to watch and see what you do.

“The world ain't all sunshine and rainbows. It's a very mean and nasty place and I don't care how tough you are it will beat you to your knees and keep you there permanently if you let it. You, me, or nobody is gonna hit as hard as life. But it ain't about how hard ya hit. It's about how hard you can get hit and keep moving forward. How much you can take and keep moving forward. That's how winning is done!”  ROCKY BALBOA

Top 5 Movies Made For Business Dreamers + Brand Builders