Leadership lessons from pop culture
The BIG Takeaway™
newsletter
Aug. 22, 2022

​What leaders can learn from TV, sports and movies this week

Hello current and aspiring leaders! 

Last week "Better Call Saul" ended and the "Game of Thrones" prequel "House of the Dragon" premiered. The amount of pop culture options never stops!

I found this interesting story titled "Everyone Is Naming Their Dogs After 'Game of Thrones' Characters."
  • Even more interesting? The URL for the story is moviefone.com. Is that still a thing? When I hear movie phone I can only think of this clip from Seinfeld.

Speaking of dogs, Friday, Aug. 26 is National Dog Day. In honor of of this special day I am going to share a lesson with a dog, a hula hoop and an example of creative thinking?

Have I got your attention?

​​Let's go.

Rich Trombetta
@trombettarich
Aug. 22, 2022
This week's BIG Takeaway:
Everyone (and every dog) is creative. Give them the space to prove it.
Image: Pexels
Everyone has great ideas
It's just a matter of letting people get them out

The context: This video shows a dog struggling to get a hula hoop up a flight of stairs (please watch; it is only 17 seconds and I guarantee you will smile)

  • The dog starts with a conventional route and struggles to get up the steps.

  • Not willing to accept defeat, the dog tries other options.

  • Hurray! The dog comes up with a unique idea to solve the problem.

What we can learn: Getting out of the way and letting people work through problems can lead to great ideas and solutions.
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  • The owners could have intervened and helped the dog. They didn't and that was OK.

  • By allowing the dog to TRY other options a surprise - and creative - solution emerged.

  • If the dog truly couldn't have carried the hula hoop up the steps after trying different approaches THEN the owners could have intervened. 

My take: EVERYONE is creative. As a leader it is critical to balance a) letting people develop their own solutions (not yours!) with b) knowing when to step in.

  • The idea that everyone is creative is not my opinion, it is fact proven by science and research. Please read this article to see the data.
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  • While the solution might not be what YOU would have done, the positive effects of people identifying and implementing a solution to a problem are huge. Self-confidence, a sense of accomplishment, seeing their work appreciated and knowing you trust them to try new things are just a few of the benefits.

  • ​​If the person is still having difficulty, use it as a coaching and teaching moment to support and thank them for trying.

    SIDE NOTE: The dog in that video looks soooooo proud and happy!
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The BIG Takeaway:
Everyone (and every dog) is creative. Give them the space to prove it.
Let's put this into action
Image: Pexels
👉​What you can do RIGHT NOW to go even further.
📢​ What you can do with others:
  • Work with your team or other colleagues to dig deeper into our topics using our discussion guides and simple conversation prompts. Instead of a book club I like to think of this as our "movie-or-TV club." ​

    This week's prompts: 
    1. Why is important for people to present their own ideas and solutions?
    2. How do we as leaders strike the balance between letting people struggle and knowing when to step in?
    3. How do we/should we react when a person's solution is different than what we may have done? 
    4. What would we name the dog in the video? 
Did you know we can design and deliver custom classes or programs based on topics we write about?

​Click the button to learn more.
That's all for now

But wait! Here's our weekly dog video to help you smile before you go. So happy!
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​Thanks for reading and please remember:
  • We archive our stories and put them here for the world to read so feel free to have a look.
  • If you have any ideas or feedback Contact me with your thoughts.
  • We can create custom newsletters​ and training sessions on the topics we write about.
Rich Trombetta
​@trombettarich

Please share this and tell your friends and colleagues!
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