Leadership Lessons from Ted Lasso, Season 2 (#166)
Ted Lasso is a comedy show on Apple TV that just concluded its second season on Friday, October 8, 2021. Written by Bill Lawrence, Jason Sudeikis, Joe Kelly, and Brendan Hunt, the show follows Ted Lasso (played by Jason Sudeikis), an American football coach who is hired to coach an English premier league (AFC Richmond) soccer team. Season 1 was beloved and won four Emmy Awards, earning prizes for Outstanding Comedy Series, Outstanding Actor in a Comedy Series, Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series, and Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series. Like many sitcoms, Season 2 struggled a little bit to find its rhythm. Nevertheless, Ted Lasso Season 2 is an excellent show that shares a great number of leadership lessons. Here are five of my favorites that any manager or leader can apply to their situation:
Have Fun — Isaac McAdoo (played by Kola Bokinni), is the captain of the AFC Richmond soccer team. However, he is struggling on the field — overthinking his actions, misjudging plays, and not leading his peers. Roy Kent (played by Brett Goldstein) takes Isaac to a soccer field near the apartment where he grew up. Roy has Isaac play a pickup soccer game with the local players, reminding him to remember the joy he had as a kid on the soccer field. Isaac dominates the pick-up soccer game, has fun, and regains his love for the game. He takes the attitude back to the professional team and Richmond wins its first game. It’s a great lesson for all of us as leaders — it is important to have fun. We set the tone as leaders for the organization. If we aren’t having fun at some parts of the job our team is definitely not having fun at all.
Transitions — Roy Kent retired from soccer at the end of Season 1 after years of playing. Like many of us, he struggled with the career change or transition (there is a deeper dive into transitions in Post #161). He spent time as a girl’s youth soccer coach. He hung out with a circle of non-soccer friends doing yoga. After encouragement from his girlfriend, Keeley, he ends up as a Soccer Commentator on Sky Sports. He is commended for his honest, refreshing commentary and criticism of the other commentators. Yet he remains unsatisfied.
When Coach Lasso gets him to work with Isaac to help him regain his spark, Roy realizes he is meant to be a soccer coach. He quits his job as a commentator and joins Richmond as an assistant coach. As Roy Kent says, as you are making a job transition, make sure you “Do what you are meant to do.”
For those transitioning out of the military sometimes that is a tough proposition — we have spent twenty years at one job and have little to no idea what else is out there and what we are truly meant to do. I tell other people transitioning out of the military that you probably aren’t going to land in the perfect job right out of the service. It may take you one or two or even three jobs to find the right one. I know it did for me. As long as you are open for opportunities like Roy, you can find what you are meant to do, though.
Rom-Communism — In Episode 5, Coach Ted Lasso tells the team that “he believes in "Communism ... Rom-Communism, that is. Gentlemen, believing in rom-communism is all about believing that everything's gonna work out in the end. Now, these next few months might be tricky, but that's just 'cause we're going through the dark forest. Fairy tales do not start, nor do they end, in the dark forest."
Accomplishing gritty goals or leading your team to accomplish a gritty objective also requires a belief that everything’s going to work out in the end. Having this optimism is a form of perseverance that helps you get through the dark forest. Perseverance is persisting in doing something difficult. Improving your perseverance isn’t easy. Whether you are trying to get your team back into the Premier League, running a marathon, or building a small company you can use small wins, memories of past persistence, or momentum to forge your perseverance, build your grit, and get out of the dark forest.
Trying — In Episode 8, Richmond gets beaten 5-0 by Manchester City. In the post-game interview, Sam Obisanya (played by Toheeb Jimoh) says “We lost. Very badly. But we tried. We gave it everything we had, and for me, that is okay, because what's worse is not to try at all. To try is scary, you know, because you can end up losing a lot. But you have to put your heart out there.”
It takes courage to manage your fears and take a risk. For many of us, these fears manifest themselves as procrastination, failure to follow through, or anxiety. I know when I take a risk, like writing a book, I was filled with anxiety. What if no one read it? A great technique that I used to manage my fears is to list all of my fears and then figure out a way to mitigate or reduce each fear. A more detailed explanation of this technique is available in Post #98.
Help — One of the season’s strongest themes was that it is okay to admit vulnerability and seek help to get better. The team hires Dr. Sharon Fieldstone (played by Sarah Niles) as a sports psychologist. During the season she helps Dani Rojas regain his “football is life” mentality and score goals again after he accidentally killed the team mascot during a penalty kick. Sam Obisanya consults with his father several times during the season. The advice his father gives him helps him chart a better path as the star of the Richmond Football Club. Finally, Ted shares with Dr. Fieldstone his father’s suicide, as well as his panic attacks. The help and advice Ted receives from Dr. Fieldstone helps Lasso deal with his own anxiety and become a better coach and person.
The show’s theme that it is okay to seek help has been refreshing, especially after a year where everyone continued to weather the pandemic and famous athletes (for example Simone Biles and Naomi Osaka) reached out for help too. Ted Lasso assists in reducing the stigma of needing help while getting a laugh in the process. Whether you need a coach, a trainer, a psychologist, or an executive coach to help you to deal with your issues, reduce your anxiety, or reach the next level in sports, business, or life take the risk and seek the appropriate help.
Conclusion
Liked this post? Love Ted Lasso? Want more? Then check out:
Leadership Lessons from John Wooden
Leadership Lessons from Ted Lasso, Season 1
John Wooden’s Pyramid of Success
If that doesn’t do it for you then check out more ideas on how to improve yourself by using my book, Grow Your Grit, available for sale at Amazon. Or reach out to me here to start the discussion about how to use these lessons and others to help improve yourself or your team’s leadership or grit. If you’d like some more ideas on how to improve yourself take a look at my book, Grow Your Grit, available for sale at Amazon. Or reach out to me here to start the discussion about how to use these lessons and others to help improve yourself or your team’s leadership or grit.
Ted Lasso has been approved for a third season which is going to be its last. Unfortunately, for me and all the other fans it will be a long wait until it releases in the late Summer of 2022. In the meantime, go on the offense in 2021 and lead your team using some of Ted Lasso’s leadership principles.