The One Lesson from “The Martian” Every Aspiring Entrepreneur Should Pay Attention To

The Martian is a fantastic movie. The book is even better. However, there's one piece in particular to which every aspiring entrepreneur can relate and should pay attention.

While there are many lessons to be learned about perseverance and stick-to-it-iveness in The Martian, most of the movie can be summed up by a statement made at the every end. There's a tiny spoiler, but nothing you probably didn't know from the preview.

My wife and I had the opportunity to see The Martian this past weekend. I listened to the audiobook earlier this year and I quickly fell in love with the Mark Watney character.

At one point in the movie (I can't tell you when), Watney, played by Matt Damon, shares one lesson that summarizes the entire movie and provides a valuable lesson for everyone trying to push themselves further and succeed in anything in life.

Watney, standing in a classroom of NASA students and astronaut hopefuls, says,

Solve one problem. Then solve another. And solve another. Solve enough problems and you'll get to come home.

That statement rings true for every one of us who is trying to do something great with our lives.

However, we often get so caught up with the big picture. We want to achieve big things, take massive steps towards our goals and make giant leaps of progress.

But, we forget that every major success is built up of dozens (if not hundreds) of tiny actions. We get so caught up on the big picture that we forget about the small strokes of the brush required to make it happen.

As you begin your journey, or you continue on it, remember to solve one problem, then another, then another. Once you've solved enough problems you'll finally look up and realize you've arrived where you've been headed all along.

Promotional image courtesy of 20th Century Fox

Over to you: What is one small step you can take today that will lead to one giant leap tomorrow?