Assignment Summary of the activity: The Founder (2016)

   This film is the story of a man named Ray Kroc, a salesman selling five-spindle milkshake makers, and his job was a very busy one, as he had to move from one place to the other for selling purposes. His wife was not happy with the situation, as he was not able to give any time to his family due to this buy job of selling. He used to visit one restaurant for sales purposes in San Bernardino, California, and the name of the restaurant was McDonald’s. Two brothers, Maurice McDonald and Richard McDonald were owners of the restaurant. Once he engaged in conversation with two brothers, talking about expansion and opening franchises. They initially hesitated, but then agreed to do so. Ray was a thought-provoking person, who had aggressive ideas in mind, and helped the restaurant to grow. He kept producing new ideas and found a way to open his restaurant. He changed the whole game and took the idea of two brothers, and then a point came in the process, that he signed a deal with two brothers, and forced them to sell their restaurant. His new idea gave new popularity to the business of McDonald’s and it became one of the world’s largest fast-food restaurants.

Lessons to learn:

            There are so many lessons to learn from this story. The first lesson to learn is that don’t think small, rather always go for bigger ideas in life. Don’t put your thought process into shell; rather allow your mind to developed new ideas. When you allow your mind to explore new ideas, then you find new opportunities. A lesson was also learned that thinking small can make you someone, who is afraid of change and new things. Ray was able to capture the idea of two brothers because both brothers did not think big, whereas Ray looked for a bigger picture, and achieved it in the end.

Summary of the activity: The Pursuit of Happyness (2006)

            It is the story of a struggling salesman, Chris Gardner, living with his wife and son in San Francisco. He makes a major decision by investing all the family savings into a business, which is a product named Osteo National bone-density scanners. The machine is a bit better than providing a clear image as compared to the x-ray machine, but it is much more expensive than the x-ray machine. So, the product could not get the attention of the customers, and their whole investment is lost. His wife thinks that there is no point to continue this relationship, so she leaves Chris and moved to New York, leaving Chris and his son, alone. Now, they had no house, so both father and son took shelter made for homeless people. He worked day and night to get out of this bad situation. He gets an opportunity to do 6 months internship at a stockbroker company, which offers the job to only 1 candidate after the internship. Due to his hard work and great efforts, he secures the job out of 20 candidates, which changes the life situation. Chris and his son finally get rid of bad days, and he becomes a wealthy man, having enough to have a luxurious life.

Lessons to learn:

            There are so many lessons to learn from this story. The first lesson is that things can go wrong in your life, but it is not the end of life. One has to deal with every bad situation and stay strong, as life never remains the same for those, who face challenges with open arms, and never hesitate to work hard as much as possible. Chris made a major decision to invest all family savings, which was a wrong decision to make, and it is a lesson that one should never invest all the family savings when the future is uncertain. The biggest lesson is staying strong and working hard day and night, as hard work certainly pays one day.

Summary of the activity: Miracle Apples (2013)

            It is the story of a man, Akinori Kimura, who lives in Japan, and gets married to Mieko. One day her wife gets sick, and her situation turns very bad. When things are investigated, he came to know that her wife is allergic to pesticides. They belonged to agriculture and farming businesses, and he knew that if they continue to use pesticides, then his wife will remain sick. So, he makes an important but impossible-looking decision. He makes a decision to open an Apple Orchard, but he will grow apples without using and pesticides. In real terms, it looked impossible to do so, but Kimura remains committed to his cause and starts working to grow apple without any pesticides. This difficult method puts a lot of financial burden on the family, and things were looking dark, as he was not getting successful to grow apples. Things were getting on his mind, once he even though about committing suicide due to his failure. It was a time when no one believed in his success, and even he himself was in a lot of doubt. But then, a miracle happens in the end, and get successful in growing apples without using any pesticides.

Lessons to learn:

            One major lesson to learn from this story is that when you care about others and face difficulties to give them relief from any pain, then all of your efforts are rewarded by God one day. Kimura took the path, which no one took in the history of mankind, growing apples without any pesticides so that he can keep her wife safe from the bad effects of pesticides. He starts to do an impossible thing but rewarded for his efforts in the end. It gives us the lesson that life is not all about living for your own self; rather it is also about having sympathy and empathy for others