10 Life Lessons From The Wolf Of Wall Street

Further note on the image: I was having difficulties uploading an image of The Wolf of Wall Street, so the one chosen must do. Martin Scorsese definitely played his cards right by investing in the film called The Wolf of Wall Street - a highly obscene sex, drugs and rock 'n' roll lifestyle in the securities industry back in the 80's (the good old days for many. Millennial moi was born too late). Materialism, drugs, sex, alcohol and money ruled the roost. A life of excess, greed, glitz and glamour prevailed over true customer service.

In my time out of the rat race (am about to re-train as a fully qualified UX Designer at General Assembly come March 2020 for a few months, as at the time of writing this); Google Play has become my best friend, taking a trip down memory lane and renting out this movie for a day. My motivation behind seeing this film again (not only because I want to see Leonardo DiCaprio at play) is also due to hearing Jordan Belfort speak at a sales conference on his straight line method in the coming weeks. Sure, phone sales and cold calling isn't my raison d 'etre; however the sales skills acquired will land me my dream IT gig sooner rather than later. Thank you Jordan.

Jordan Belfort (love him or loathe him) is a trooper; a survivor of adversities in business. And this man can sell ice to the eskimos. Even though the film was released in 2013; the life lessons acquired are just as relevant to surviving 2020 and beyond. They follow in order of brainstorming, not of relevance.

1. Greed isn't good

The Global Financial Crisis (GFC) and other economic downturns are true indicators of this. We do live in an abundant universe, yet the greed that The Wolf of Wall Street started to take on got him behind bars, together with a hefty fine. The materialistic lifestyle costed the wolf his two marriages; his business, and his dignity. At the end, he wasn't even there for his staff when the FBI entered into the Stratton Oakmont offices. Donnie Azoff (played by Jonah Hill) was the real wolf that got away scot-free.

2. Set healthy boundaries

The wolf set healthy boundaries around himself and his time. He came to learn that the FBI were investigating his 'illegal' pump and dump strategy in his business when they asked to see his wedding videos. Jordan advised that such is an invasion of his privacy; and instead came to a compromise by providing a list of the attendees from his yacht. He advised the feds to "get the f*** off my boat" when they began to overstay their welcome.

3. Find your niche

Jordan Belfort found his niche by specialising in the sale of worthless penny stocks (otherwise known as pink sheets). He had a clearly laid out strategy that differentiated him from his competition. In business, do not try to serve everybody. Only serve your specific target audience. It's exhausting otherwise.

4. Drugs can destroy

Talking about the non-prescription drugs here, like the quaaludes. Jordan and Donny popping many expired quaaludes got them into trouble, although not directly. Jordan was lucky to not get charged for destroying nearby property, yet their unconsciousness caused the wolf an abundance of grief when the money laundering rep phoned at the inopportune time, while his friend Brad landed himself behind bars. Not to mention a cranky wife. Sure, many of these drugs do keep you sharp and alert in sales jobs, yet at what cost in the long-term...

5. Sex is not the same as intimacy

It seems that the male species in particular need to know that the birds and the bees does not (always) equate to intimacy (yes, I even have to educate hubby on this sometimes.) Intimacy with your partner is all about expressing your feelings and emotions, while sex is guarded and designed to create a deeper connection with your partner - not just for a one time jerk off. If more intimacy is present in a long-term relationship; couples would be less inclined to cheat and engage in hookers for their much needed fix. (Then again, if you're a fully single male, and a relationship is not for you...hookers are good to keep on speed dial. Not when you're attached, ok.)

6. Quit while you're ahead

It is ok to admit defeat in business and in life at times. If you feel (if not know) that you're flogging a dead horse - then get off that dead horse until it eats you alive. Do this before you get burnt out (an expensive lesson moi made back in September 2019), or worse, receive greater losses for flogging a dead horse way beyond it's use by date. In the movie, Jordan had an opportunity to pay $2million and be barred from the securities industry to admit the illegalities of Stratton's unethical practices, of which would enable him to retire for life is he so chose to. Instead he pressed on and received a mammoth punishment in comparison, despite his father telling him "you've won" in response to the original settlement.

7. Nothing happens until someone sells something/takes action

From Donnie negotiating a deal to work with Jordan (that moved him to a higher level role), to the brokers picking up the phone and talking to people...nothing happens in sales (and in life) if you do not take massive action. In his speech on Steve Madden's IPO day; Jordan mentioned in his motivational talk to staff that "these telephones are worthless pieces of plastic. They don't dial themselves." Something along these lines. If you want clean teeth for example, you must brush, wash, and floss them daily, as well as make that appointment, save the money, and see your fang doctor every so often. (Even if you don't want to, and you bring earplugs to that appointment.)

8. Be careful who you employ in your business

In the movie, the wolf was given contacts by a couple of his original staff members. Donnie spearheaded the Steve Madden IPO, as he went to school with this guy, only for him to sell his shares at the wrong time; hence affecting Stratton's strategy/game plan while Jordan had to make it to Switzerland via boat as in 10 minutes ago to protect the money he laundered. The Swiss banking rep was a contact from Nicky Koskoff, who met this guy through law school who appeared to not hold up the end of the deal. Jordan's father "Mad Max" even called his staff "knuckleheads." The chickens definitely came home to roost.

9. Look after your staff/people

The wolf was a pioneer in this area. He invited them to lavish parties at his home, where team building was the initial order of the day. He even invited them to his second wedding to Naomi, in addition to lashing out on hookers, food and drinks; and as a result he created an engaged, productive workplace where they (the staff) loved their boss. Jordan also mentioned the world "morale" in the movie.

10. Have an anchor for success

This concept called 'anchoring' is a strategy used in Neuro Linguistic Programming (NLP); and it means to create a resource anchor to get yourself pumped/into a peak state. Whether you need to up the ante before a date, and/or before a sales call and/or meeting; creating an anchor (like a fist pump - something meaningful to you) helps. This wasn't the case for Stratton Oakmont in real life; yet in the movie Jordan's boss at Rothschild Mark Hanna (played by Matthew McConaughey) created the chest pump with a hum that may occasionally burst out into a song, in order to keep to purpose in his stockbroking work.

There are many more key takeaways from watching this powerful, insightful movie; yet these ones stood out for yours truly the most. Furthermore, it is a disappointment that Leonardo DiCaprio did not win an Oscar and/or some other acting award for his superior acting and research for this film. Then again, the character who used to play Dr. Preston Burke in Grey's Anatomy (Isaiah Washington) used to attend and observe some surgeries in real life in order to be a better actor and version of himself. Leo would be the only actor in Hollywood who would know the real Jordan Belfort intimately, in order to play him in this great movie.

Thank you very much for supporting my work financially and otherwise, in order to continually pour out my love of writing and creativity to you lovely reader on a frequent basis. I sincerely wish that you're able to apply at least a couple of these gems into your life. Self development is everything. Go for it, and be your own wolf within the law.