Some Lessons from Ted Lasso

This post originally appeared on my LinkedIn Profile in October, 2020.

Ok, I'm obsessed.

I'm not sure if it's the characters, the backdrop of West London, the inside-look into life at a fictional English Premier League club, the music, or the fact that 2020 has generally been less than optimal. But I'm hooked on Ted Lasso, a series that just completed its first season on Apple +.

As a fan of the EPL, I was excited when NBC Sports picked up coverage for EPL games a few years go. To promote this move, NBC hired Jason Sudeikis to play an American Football Coach who awkwardly accepted a managerial role for an EPL Club in London. It undoubtedly helped promote NBC's new Saturday morning traditions of covering the most famous league for the Beautiful Game. Fast-forward a few years later, and Jason and others have created a truly unique collection of stories and settings that leaves you longing for so much more. Fortunately (or unfortunately) they are writing Season 2 now, but it won't be streamed until late Summer 2021.

There's so much to unpack. There are so many memorable quotes. Scenes come and go and somehow seemingly disconnected topics are pulled together faster than a counter attack from Chelsea.

And woven into one of the episodes towards the latter part of Season 1 is now one of my Top-5 favorite television scenes ever, where Sudeikis manages to incorporate Allen Iverson's infamous "It's Just Practice" diatribe into a lecture directed at his young, yet selfish and self-centered, star player. It's 45 seconds of pure genius.

But real quick, and there's so much more I'd like to dive into, here are my top 3 Lessons from Season 1 of Ted Lasso. I think they apply to life and leadership:

1. Don't be a chameleon - be a Ted Lasso - Even in the opening credits of each episode, you see the impact Ted has on his surroundings. To truly affect others, don't blend in like a chameleon and hope some how you'll magically be given an opportunity to impact another's life. Rather, be a Ted Lasso. No matter the setting or situation, whenever Ted is in the room, people turn their heads. People open their ears - even if it's in disdain or begrudging curiosity. With his goofy, aw-shucks Midwestern vibe, Ted slowly starts to work his magic with his co-workers and with his team that he's charged to manage. He's able to do it, I think, because of his optimism and positivity. He wins hearts and minds because he stands out and he uses that to his advantage.
2. Be genuine - At first, I thought Ted's schtick couldn't last half an episode, let alone 10 full ones. It comes across as a character you might find manning a roller coaster at Silver Dollar City in Branson, Missouri. But the schtick is the real thing, and it's 100% Ted, and it's this be-yourself-in-all-circumstances attitude that ultimately earns Ted the respect of his harshest critics. I know many of us work in the fast-paced, high-profile world of technology where there are so many bright, intelligent, attractive people and it's so easy to feel insecure about your Powerpoint slides, the spreadsheet, or whether you look like a million bucks in a web conference. I know in my 25-year career I've felt insecure, and pressured to act differently, or talk in a certain way. But at some point, I accepted that I was just "a guy from Missouri," and the fact I went to a middle-tier state university didn't really matter. I needed to be myself and everything would fall into place. Ted Lasso is a great example I've seen of this.
   
   
3. Take a Chance on your Less-Obvious Teammates - Ted Lasso knows nothing about soccer, especially in the early episodes of Season 1. So he decides to lean on "the kit man," a character named Nate who is essentially the water/equipment helper who is bullied and mocked by insecure players in the locker room. Ted finds the diamond in the rough with Nate and their relationship is one of the joys of Season 1, to see how Ted consistently finds ways to include Nate and push him outside his comfort zone. I've been fortunate to see this mindset work first-hand. Eric Berridge, the co-founder of Bluewolf, taught a master class in how a compilation of people from different backgrounds and diverse educations and experiences, can come together to create something special. At Bluewolf, our CTO was a former bike messenger in Manhattan. One of our all-time best revenue producers sold yellow page advertisements in Japan. And in his fantastic Ted Talk, Eric talks about the time where one of our top Solution Architects got staffed on a project after a conversation at a bar. He was the bartender! So look around, no matter the title, the role, the bill rate, or the education, there are likely people around you who have much to offer your team, your company, and your life. Give them a chance.

I could go on. But that's literally right off the top of my head having binge-watched a bunch of episodes in the past week. I couldn't sleep last night because there was so much to digest. If you haven't seen it, I encourage you to give it a chance. It's a unique experience. And if you have, please share you favorite characters, scenes, quotes or Lasso-isms. I look forward to hearing from you.