Chapter 2: Risk - Video Clips

One of my all-time favorite movies is Braveheart. It’s based on the life of William Wallace, who led Scotland’s fight for independence from England in the late 1200s and early 1300s.

One of Wallace’s greatest gifts was his ability to call out the true warrior in a man, rallying his people to fight back against England’s oppressive ways and its cruel King, Edward I.

During the movie, as he surveys the field before one pivotal battle, Wallace (played by actor Mel Gibson) sees fear and resignation in the eyes of his fellow Scots. They are badly outnumbered by the superior English forces. In fact, many of these Scotsmen, little more than peasant farmers with crude, handmade weapons, have already started to retreat, turning their backs on the battlefield.

Wallace, his face painted blue and white (the colors of the Scottish flag), his eyes fierce and voice strong, rides his horse down the splintered line of men and calls out to them.

Watch the powerful scene here:

shadow-ornament

Braveheart is an epic movie, one that carries many great metaphors for the topics I cover in the pages of Fired Up!

If you haven't seen it yet, here's a look at the movie trailer:

shadow-ornament

The “warrior heart” inside both men and women is where risk and confidence come from, both in business and life. Tap into that part of a person, get him or her to begin to believe, and the sky’s the limit.

There’s a fantastic scene in The Matrix that illustrates this reality.

Up until this point, the rebels operating inside The Matrix — an area controlled and dominated by the evil “agents” who patrol it — always sneak around and flee at the first sign of trouble. Nobody has ever stood up to one of the agents and lived. Until, that is, Neo is confronted by the leader of the enemy — Agent Smith — inside a deserted subway station, with his main avenue for escape cut off.

Watch what happens: