Why Rocky is An Awesome Example of the 3 Principles in Action

After the disappointment and financial failure of Rocky V in 1990, Sylvester Stallone put out a series of well, let’s put it politely, even more disappointing movies. He tried his hand at something like comedy with “Stop Or My Mom Will Shoot”. He then went for something a bit more dramatic with “Oscar”. He did several others before recognizing that his strong suit — and the place where his talents were more appreciated — were playing his signature characters such as Rocky and Rambo as well as other action-oriented roles. In fact, there are numerous less memorable projects he was involved in throughout his career — many more in fact than what he’s best known for. Yet, those are the standout. That is what he’s known for.

What are my credentials as a movie reviewer and why am I sharing the above with you? To the first question, I have no credentials — I’m merely sharing my fan-based opinions. As to the second question, I’m spending a lot of time in my hometown of Philadelphia these days. Philly is one of my favorite cities to run in and today I was doing one of the most inspiring routes that ends up at — you guessed it — the Art Museum and those steps that Rocky ascended so many times. So, my mind was on Stallone and the Rocky movies which I’m not ashamed to say are some of my absolute favorites. Reality based? Who cares! You can’t watch them and not believe that dreams can come true — and more importantly, every one of us has the ability to make our own dreams come true.

And perhaps most important, what’s my point?
After those brief flirtations with other opportunities, Stallone moved back to the zone of action-oriented films. Ultimately, he doubled down on the whole Rocky-thing. He brought him back to the screen in 2006 with the well-received film “Rocky Balboa” even giving the character more depth with a plausible story of a late-in-life comeback (think George Forman). And Rocky was given new life in 2015 with the introduction of the Creed movies with the now elder boxer coaching his former opponent’s son.
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If you’re tired of the movie stuff, we’re done with that so stick with me. Take away all of the film stuff and what you have is a story that is a great example of recognizing our true nature (though I have a a hunch the actor never studied up on Syd Banks and the Three Ps). Stallone realized that he enjoyed the freedom to try other roles. At the same time, he stopped running away from the type of acting and creative work he seemed to embody that came to him so naturally and with ease.

We can do the same thing. I am all about personal growth and development and especially taking on new challenges. I hope you are too — it’s what keeps life really interesting! If I didn’t like getting a little uncomfortable and helping others stretch, I certainly would be in the wrong line of work as a consultant and coach. But there is a certain beauty and ease to understanding, accepting and even leveraging our truest selves. That’s the self that emerges when we’re doing the work and the creating that comes to us as an extension of ourselves.

How do you know when you’re in that magical zone?
​Here are a couple good markers — or at least what I’ve found to be true for me. You know it when time stops mattering. You’re not rushed and you have plenty of time to do exactly what you’re doing. You know it when there’s no gripping and no tension. You know it when you find people asking you to do more of whatever your thing is (and they’ll probably say something like “hey, that’s your thing!).

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​The other point to remember is that you’ll certainly know when you are NOT in that zone. Much like that “Stop Or My Mom Will Shoot” moment for Sylvester Stallone, you’ll instinctually feel it when you’re going against your true nature. And it’s great to test those boundaries every so often to see where else we can make a difference. However, if we get that gift of knowing where we make our most impactful contribution and can truly be of service, there’s much to be said for making that our life’s work. I hope you are on the way to finding your inner Rocky.