Image may be NSFW.
Clik here to view.

1. Be the hero.

I’ve seen “Armageddon” probably 12 times. Each time I cried. When Bruce Willis decides to sacrifice himself and detonate a thermonuclear bomb inside an asteroid, I say to myself: “I want to be a hero.”

Action always trumps talk. If you want to be a hero, you’ll have to do the hard things. You don’t have to die to be a hero; it may just be doing whatever it takes to increase your income and give your family a better life. Heroes do things that others won’t! —Grant Cardone, top sales expert who has built a $500-million real estate empire, and NYT-bestselling author of “Be Obsessed or Be Average”; follow Grant on Facebook or YouTube

In a classic scene, Morpheus’ red pill would wake Neo up with knowledge of the “real reality,” free of illusions. The blue pill would keep Neo ignorant but blissful in his old belief system and mundane life experience. Neo takes the red pill. Once awakened, he can’t conceive of going back to ignorant sleep.

Since becoming a student of meditation in 1985, I’ve had experiences similar to this “awakening” metaphor. It’s now evident to me that we can live in more than one reality: an outer reality perceived by the senses and an inner reality perceived by intuition and spiritual insight. The inner reality can profoundly shape the outer—but only if we “take the red pill” of mental training and spiritual development. —Mark Divine, retired U.S. Navy SEAL commander, founder of SEALFIT and NYT/WSJ bestselling author; follow SEALFIT on YouTube, Facebook, or Instagram

Image may be NSFW.
Clik here to view.

10. Never ever give up.

This scene from “The Pursuit of Happyness” was game changing for me: “Don’t ever let somebody tell you… You can’t do something. Not even me… You got a dream… You gotta protect it. People can’t do somethin’ themselves, they wanna tell you ‘you can’t do it.’ If you want somethin’, go get it. Period.”

The biographical drama is based on entrepreneur Chris Gardner’s one-year struggle with homelessness in the 1980s while raising his son. Motivated by his fierce commitment to his dream and duty to his son, Chris doesn’t take no for an answer.

Chris’s story taught me to never ever quit! When you pursue your big dream, everybody will tell you that your idea is bad and can never happen. You gotta prove them all wrong. Better to try and fail than to never try! —Steve Griggs, founder and CEO of Steve Griggs Design; NYC’s premier landscape designer transforming backyards and rooftop gardens intoprivate getaways

Want to share your insights like those above in a future column? If you’re an experienced entrepreneur, please get in touch here.

Want to suggest a future topic for these entrepreneurs to answer? Email suggestion@theoracles.com and it’s very possible we’ll make your suggestion the focus of a future article!

Follow The Oracles on Facebook.