20 Leadership Quotes and Lessons From Mission Impossible: Rogue Nation

Mission Impossible: Rogue Nation is amazing!  This is the best action movie I have seen since Lone Survivor.  Unbelievable action sequences, stunts and the movie keeps you guessing throughout.  And I want to give them credit for something else – no language.  I’m all in on Rogue Nation!

Tom Cruise is back for the fifth installment of this amazing franchise.  Cruise, once again playing Ethan Hawk, is tasked with eradicating an international group of rouge agents called The Syndicate who are as skilled and talented as Hunt himself.

Go see this movie!  The following are 20 Leadership Quotes and Lessons From Mission Impossible: Rogue Nation:

1. Women Are The Most Loyal Audience – Just ask Oprah, Ellen or Beth Moore.  70% of the sold out audience tonight were women. I asked my wife why so many females were at an action movie.  She said, “They’re not here for the action.  They’re here for a reaction (to Tom Cruise).”
2. Successful Leaders Must Constantly Make Difficult Decisions – As I watched this movie I could not help but notice one difficult decision had to be made after another.  Leaders understand this.  They often make difficult decisions on a daily basis.  It simply comes with the responsibility of being a leader.
3. Authenticity Matters – The movie’s stunts, hanging off an airplane and an incredible motorcycles chase among others, look real because they are real.
4. You Never Have To Recover From A Good Start – Smart leaders always plan a fast start.  This prevents you from spending an excessive amount of upfront energy digging out of a hole.  The movie opens with the airplane scene shown above.  Great opening!
5. Smart Leaders Know How To Leverage Luck – Everyone receives luck – good luck and bad luck.  It is what you do with luck which matter.  “Your results look like luck.”  These were words spoken during a congressional hearing about the actions of the IMF.
6. Your Greatest Strength As A Leader Can Sometimes Be Your Greatest Weakness – “Hunt is an arsonist and fireman at the same time.” – Alan Hunley, head of the CIA, played by Alec Baldwin.
7. Successful Leaders Fight Through Discouragement – There are perks to leadership but there is also a price.  Sometimes leadership is not all it is cracked up to be.  Benji Dunn, played by Simon Pegg, says “Join the IMF.  See the world on a monitor inside a closest.”
8. Successful Leaders Always See The Potential In Others – During a foiled assassination attempt Benji gets shot by Ilsa Faust, played by Rebecca Ferguson.  Benji says, “She shot me!”  Hunt replies, “That doesn’t make her a bad person.”
9.  Leaders Are Willing To Pay A Higher Price Than Others Are Willing To Pay – Benji says, “I am a field agent.  I know the risks.”
10. Trust Is The Foundation Of Any Successful Relationship – Luther, played by Ving Rhames, tells Brandt, played by Jeremy Renner, “I know Ethan.  I don’t know you.”
11. Results Matter – Actions speak louder than words.  The team did not trust Ilsa until she saved Ethan’s life.
12. Successful Leaders Expect The Best And Plan For The Worst – After securing a disk containing an incredible amount of sensitive information, Benji says, “Of course I made a copy of the disk.”
13. Great Leaders Forge Mutually Beneficial Relationships – Ilsa said, “I was not going to let him (Hunt) die.  He’s an allie.”
14. Leaders See Opportunities Others Fail To See – Luther says, “Sometimes Ethan is the ONLY one capable of seeing the ONLY way.”
15. Leadership Is A Calling And A Choice – Ilsa tells Hunt, “We’re only fighting for the right side because that’s what we choose to believe.”
16. There Will Always Be Problems Which Leaders Will Be Needed To Solve – Ilsa continues in her conversation with Hunt, “There’ll always be another Lane.  There’ll always be people like us to fight him.”
17. Smart Leaders Always Put People Ahead Of Tasks – Brandt says, “We do what we have to do for our friends.”
18. Great Leaders Make Others Look Good – IMF agents Hunt and Brandt made Hunley very successful at a key point in the movie.
19. Desperation Is A Leader’s Friend – Brandt says, “Desperate times.  Desperate measures.”  For more on the topic of desperation, click 10 Reasons Why Desperation Can Be Your Best Friend.
20. Great Leaders Must Have A Great Team Around Them To Achieve Success – “You have an army.  We have a Hulk.” As I watched the movie I was reminded of this Robert Downey Jr. quote from The Avengers.  Hunt was the Hulk taking on an army of Syndicate agents.  However, he still needed a great team around him to ultimately succeed.

Once again, Mission Impossible: Rogue Nation is a fantastic movie.  Go see it and have a great time.

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