Some conversations (political, professional, et al) leave me with the craving for a good movie. Well that or a pint of ice cream. But since I am on behavior modification – we all know diets don’t work – I lean towards the movie. Well I recently rewatched Django Unchained and where the movie was funny, and jarring and poignant, it was very pithy because I could so see the sales professional in it. Let me explain.
In the context of this film Django – the hero of our story – is a sales professional (because we are the heroes of our own stories, so we should always see ourselves in the heroes of our stories). So now that this is our context, and the prism through which we look at this film. So let's consider the following...
Django dealt with so much HATE. Yes there was the expected (N-word tossed around like an article). But in this context the greater hate the surprising hate was that you could find in Samuel Jackson’s character Stephen. From their first meeting, all Stephen could do was look at Django’s position (on the horse) and ooze HATE. What was his line? Who is this…on a horse? His entire mission in life appeared to be to tear him down by any means necessary. It was quite the satisfying experience at the end to see his comeuppance.
The biggest takeaway for me, we can have a hero’s arc: appear, fall, rebound, triumphant end. And during that arc, there is opposition and even some active opposition. That opposition can lead to a very rough fall. But the bounce back is completely dependent on the hero’s ability to own his own story. He rode the horse with confidence and self definition. When he came back for the final fight, he had that same confidence and self determination.
You can watch the movie again for yourself. I just want to highlight the part that can fuel us in our day. At some point in your career, you will deal with a hater. The hater does not define you, you do. The hater is only consumed by what is in their head. And if you do not keep an eye on them they just may harm you. But don’t let their opinion of you make you shrink in your saddle. You are who you are. You are not who the haters frame you to be.
Haters gonna hate, but Bosses stand on business.
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