Just imagine

Tomorrowland is a wonderfully magical, positive and uplifting film that I urge you to go and see. OK, from a purist scifi perspective, the narrative does not quite hold together (which I cannot unpack without spoiling the movie) but that doesn't really matter. Just climb aboard the jet-pack to the future and imagine a better world.

Hugh Laurie has some of the best lines in the film, so listen out for those. George Clooney is fabulous of course and balanced well by Britt Robertson. But the real star who blew me away was Raffey Cassidy: she has such presence for a young girl. Delivering some of the lines she has to say next to George Clooney took amazing skill. For no other reason, go and see this movie just for her acting alone! This is Disney at their best: enchanting but with a powerful deep message of which we should all take heed.

Near the beginning of the film, there is a discussion about how the shape of lives is determined by which inner wolf we feed: the wolf of darkness & despair or the wolf of light and hope. This is probably the most critical challenge for any leader: how to temper optimism with realism without plummeting into pessimism. It is a fine line to tread. A very fine line...

The way in which leaders dream is often via the medium of mission statements. And the best one I know of, and which is very germane to this film, is JFK's "we will put a man on the moon in ten years". This statement was understandable, believable, communicable and usable while being inspiring all at the same time! Perhaps a good example of dreaming with reality in mind...

As a leader, how do you express your dreams?

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This is the ninety second of my 2014/2015 series of blogs about leadership ideas to be found in the movies of our time. You can read here as why I began doing this (with an update at the end of 2014). Please subscribe to this blog if you want to read more. Thanks. Click the label 'film' to see all the others.