Why You Should Watch the Eddie the Eagle Movie if You’re a Startup

Your lasting legacy will be built on the struggle, not the triumph

The first time I saw ‘Eddie the Eagle the Movie’, nothing could have prepared me for how it would make me view my life and all that it would teach me about running a successful business.

The film is charming and funny and will leave you with a lasting fuzzy feeling inside, but it’s probably not the film you’d typically associate with life-changing business advice.

For those too young to remember who Eddie the Eagle is; he was born Michael Edwards, in Cheltenham, England in 1963. Nicknamed Eddie by his friends; Edward’s always dreamed of being an Olympian, trying out for a range of sports as a child. Though giving up his dream of being a Summer Olympian, he finally finds his craft in the Winter Olympics as a skier.

The running themes throughout the film are resilience and determination. Every time Eddie gets knocked down, he finds another route forward. When he didn’t make the cut as a downhill skier, he finds ski jumping instead. When he had no money to support himself, he slept in a Finnish mental hospital for £1 a night, so he had somewhere to stay while he trained. He always found a solution.

Here are some business and life lessons all entrepreneurs and startups should know from Eddie’s ski slopes of success.

Lesson 1 — It’s OK to Change Your Focus if Things Aren’t Going to Plan

You might know you want to be a successful entrepreneur, and you might have the skills and experiences to make it happen, but you might not have your focus entirely right. Eddie teaches us that you might have to try a few things out (or a lot) to see what works. And that it’s OK to keep testing and tweaking. Eventually, you’ll find your niche.

When Eddies doesn’t qualify as a downhill skier for the 1984 Winter Olympics team, he finds another route to his Olympic glory in the form of ski jumping. Something no UK skier had done since 1928.

Lesson 2 — Sometimes in Business, We Have Unconventional Dreams and Humble Beginnings

Like Eddie wanting to be a ski jumper — Your startup might also be pursuing something that hasn’t been done before, or at least in the way you want to do it. Eddie teaches us that disrupting the market isn’t a bad thing!

We learn that as a child, Eddie had braces on his legs right through to adolescence and that he may not be able to walk again properly.

Yet still, he stays true to his vision.

Eddie had no coach or money to support him to become the Olympian he aspired to be. Where most ski jumpers would have been training from the age of four, Eddie picks up the sport at the age of 22 — training for only 18 months before his Olympic debut.

And still, none of these setbacks, deter his grit and determination.

Lesson 3 — Where You Start isn’t Necessarily Where You’ll End up.

Often as startups, we encounter imposter syndrome. Perhaps you think you need to have a certain degree have attended a particular school or know certain people in your industry to make it in your field.

Like Eddie, while the odds might not seem to be in your favour. Single mum, bankrupt, ex-addict, criminal record, no qualifications, a disability, language barriers whatever! — Eddie teaches us that ordinary people in extraordinary situations do create success even when it might at first seem impossible.

Eddie didn’t have the ideal start in life, but he worked with what he had, and he kept moving forward regardless.

Lesson 4 — Never Lose Sight of the Vision You Have for Your Business.

One of the main elements that struck me about Eddie’s story was that he never gave up on his dream. He had that goal and vision in his mind from such a young age. He knew he would be an Olympian, and he never wavered from that premise even when everyone around him was telling him otherwise.

You can use creative visualisations and affirmations to keep your vision alive, and then never falter from that premise. Many startup business owners don’t just wake up one day and decide to start their businesses.

The dream is a tugging in our hearts that has been pulling us for the longest of times. It’s a whisper that keeps on getting louder and stronger until one day it hits us upside the head and won’t allow us to avoid the calling any longer. Eddie teaches us to keep hold of the vision, even if we don’t know where it is leading us.

Lesson 5 — Staying Positive and Redefining Success

Eddie is a naturally positive person — but how many Olympians that come last in their sport would be able to emit so much happiness outwardly? You can see just how grateful he is for the opportunity to fulfil his lifelong dream.

Having a positive mental attitude is one thing but living your life that way — day in day out, is another.

Startup Spoiler Alert — It’s not about winning.

Eddie broke the rules around what winning meant. It isn’t always about receiving the gold medal. It’s about being proud of how far you’ve come and about celebrating the achievements, however big or small — it’s about enjoying the journey.

The most important thing in the Olympic Games is not to win but to take part, just as the most important thing in life is not the triumph but the struggle. The essential thing is not to have conquered but to have fought well.

Pierre de Coubertin — French Educator and Historian, Founder of the International Olympic Committee.

Lesson 6 — Trust Your Intuition

There is a moment in the film where Hugh Jackman’s character who plays Eddie’s coach tries to convince Eddie to not enter the Olympics for fear of being ridiculed and being made a laughingstock.

While fictitious, Hugh’s character represents a personality type, so many entrepreneurs encounter every day — a former Olympian who had his own failed dreams. He believed that given another four years of training, Eddie might be able to become a ‘better’ athlete for the next Winter Olympics.

Many spouses, friends, family, co-workers, and the like, all have our best interests at heart. They want to protect us from what they see as our inevitable demise as a startup. But Eddie, like many of us, chooses to soldier on in pursuit of his dreams, knowing that deep down his time is indeed now.

As an entrepreneur, this is about knowing yourself and following your intuition regardless. It’s about looking the naysayers in the face and saying, “I know myself better, and I’m ready for any outcome.” Eddie knew — that the Olympics at that very moment in time; was the right time for him. He was building momentum, he knew he was never going to win, but that wasn’t his goal. His goal was to be an Olympian.

Know what your goals are.

If Eddie had trained for another four years, would his legacy have been the same? Would he have inspired us in quite the same way? While all Olympians are inspirations, we tend not to remember all the Olympians that sit between Olympic underdog and Olympic champions.

It’s the personal journeys that inspire us; the breakthroughs, the heartache, and the determination that leaves us with a lasting impression.

A few months after Eddie competed at the games — the Olympic Committee changed the rules so that instead of anyone being able to represent their country; hopefuls would instead need to place either in the top 50 competitors or in the top 30 percentile for international competition.

The aim was to keep the ‘Eddie the Eagles’ of the Olympic world out of the competition. What this highlights the most, is that Eddie’s intuition in that very moment; was one of the best decisions he could ever have made. Had he waited four years; like his coach had suggested he may never have competed at all?

As a startup business, you will have to believe in yourself, even when no one else will. You’ll need to be brave, determined and never give up. You’ll have to follow that whisper inside of you telling you can, even when the odds are stacked against you.

Eddie believed in himself, and so should you. If you want your moment, go out there and do it for real. You might not win medals or accolades, but you might just leave a legacy that will inspire someone to win against all the odds.