Lessons from “Facebook” #1
11 Lessons of “The Social Network” Movie in 2011
written by Mastin Kipp, Huffington Post 01/11 summarized & enhanced by Peter/CXO, Wiz4biz
The movie “The Social Network” – which is about the founding of Facebook – has inspired many to start or grow their entrepreneurial idea. Here are the lessons I see from watching the movie. If you havent already, go see it !!!
1. Sometimes there are more important things in life than going to School. I’m not putting down formal education, but the education of real life can be more important and you can learn what you need later. Bill Gates (MicroSoft) and Mark Zuckerberg (Facebook) both left college to pursue their dreams once they had the vision. Here are some other surprising billionaire college dropouts: Steve Jobs (Apple), Paul Allen (Microsoft), Michael Dell (Computers). People like Richard Branson (Virgin), Walt Disney, Milton Hershey (Chocolate), and Henry Ford didn’t even go to college.
The lesson here is, when you find your passion, let the inspiration of a great idea help you to soar to new heights of creativity & fulfillment. Share your dreams with anyone who’ll listen. If they catch your passion, ask them to be partners, hire them or use them as advisors.
2. It’s not about “Who has an idea, but who can Execute it”. There’s not that many original ideas. We all get great ideas. It’s all about who can take it to market. Facebook happened because Mark had the vision, confidence & discipline to make it happen. So if you have a big idea, you should figure that you probably aren’t the only one. Your job is to get busy, making it happen.
3. Change can happen Fast. “From idea to execution” doesn’t have to be forever. Mark is living proof that with enough vision, talent & hard work, you can change your life in a few weeks. If you have a great idea, don’t wait on it. Throw yourself into it. Ideas, once executed, have a way of pulling you up out of your current circumstances and elevating you to a whole new level of living that you were never aware of before. In any relationship, business or personal, if you want it to blossom, show up, go for it !!! Your time, research & focus are valuable elements to make your dream come true.
4. Figure out how to be of Value/Service.
Facebook’s popularity and quick rise has nothing to do with Mark’sprogramming skills. He could have easily programmed a million different sites. But the site he chose to program provided so much value to the users, that the product sold itself through the strongest way possible: “word-of-mouth”. Facebook unites us. It allows us to express ourselves. It helps us keep in touch with the world and our loved ones. If you want to grow your business, figure out how your product can solve problems and be of service. This is the key to your success. Everything else is just minor details.
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