Leadership lessons from pop culture
The BIG Takeaway™
newsletter
May 2, 2022

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

Hello current and aspiring leaders!

Is it me or is sticking with a TV show these days like dating when you're in your late 20s? You get a few episodes in and you start to ask "Am I committed to this? Is this show 'the one?'" 
  • In other words, are you going to be in a long-term relationship with this program or do you need to use George Costanza's "it's not you, it's me" routine?

Just something to think about. On to leadership lessons.

The NFL draft was last week and the Kentucky Derby takes place on Saturday, May 7.
  • Both of these involve making "big bets," a concept that has gained steam in the business community.

​This week I am going to focus on this concept of "big bets" by showing how the NFL's LA Rams went against conventional draft logic and managed to balance long and short-term goals.

Speaking of making big bets, check out this scene from "Austin Powers." What is the best movie ever that involved gambling? My vote is "The Sting."

👉​Amazing stat: The online gambling market is projected to reach almost $100 billion in 2023.
  • Remember folks. The house always wins.

​Off we go.

Rich Trombetta
@trombettarich
May 2, 2022
Section No. 1: This week's big takeaway
When making "big bets" account both short-term and long-term goals.
Images: Pexels
Place your bets
Balancing short-term demands with long-term strategy

The context: This year's Super Bowl winner, the LA Rams, made some very big bets last offseason, trading away many draft picks to acquire star players; they didn't pick until the third round last week.

  • In 2021 they traded their quarterback, Jared Goff, two first-round picks and a third-round choice for Detroit Lions' 33-year-old quarterback, Matt Stafford; they also sent multiple future picks away in trades for star players like Jalen Ramsey and Von Miller.

  • The team placed a big bet that it was better to trade the picks for proven players than gamble and wait for rookies to develop; it was a tremendous risk.

  • While it might sound like a win-now approach that has the team mortgaging its future, it's not. The team is actually following a very deliberate strategic approach that balances both the short and long term.

Watch this clip: See the Rams' general manager call a player the team is about to draft last week. It's pretty cool.

What we can learn: Meeting short-term goals while also keeping an eye on long-term success is tricky but critical.

  • The Rams' strategy hinged on their belief that it is better to have players that have "lived up to their draft potential" than select rookies that may or may not become NFL-caliber players.

  • There were financial ramifications and they now have to rely on picks in later rounds to find quality players for their roster; this approach goes against much of the current conventional wisdom in the NFL.

  • However, using this approach they won the Super Bowl without destroying the team's long term prospects.

My take: The best leaders meet today's goals while also keeping an eye on the future.

  • It is tempting to do whatever it takes to meet short-term objectives; common solutions include lowering prices, slashing budgets, hiring more staff and forcing people to work long hours.

  • But there can be a heavy price to pay when too much emphasis is placed on a "win-today and don't worry tomorrow" approach. People get burned out, turnover can rise and the culture can become a mess.

  • Successful leaders look at big bets as a "both/and" arrangement: win now AND in the future.

THE BIG TAKEAWAY:  ​
  •  ​The best leaders make "big bets" that take into account both short-term and long-term goals.
​ACTION STEPS

😀​​What you can do on your own: 
  • ONE: Read this article that showcases various strategic planning and decision making tools; other tools can be found here.
    ​
  • TWO: Review this story about a famous NFL trade where one team focused too much on the short term and the other took the both/and approach.
    ​
  • THREE: Read this article from Harvard Business Review on keeping an eye on your long-term vision.

😀😀​What you can do with others:
  • Use our discussion guides with your team or other colleagues to dig deeper into this topic. (Instead of a book club I like to think of this as our "movie-or-TV club") This week: Big Bets.​​
Did you know we can design a custom leadership program based on topics like the one above? Click the button to learn more.
Section No. 2: Take 30 seconds
Learning from commercials
 Video: DraftKings
The best bet might be the one you don't make 
  • Watch the commercial above; it's message is "life is a gamble."

  • While sayings like "no guts, no glory" and "fortune favors the bold" may get the blood rushing and the excitement going, ​there are other options - like doing nothing.

  • I read this newsletter titled "Why Leaders Should Be Quitters" and thought it was appropriate for our conversation this week. 
    ​
  • Sometimes knowing what bets NOT to place and making the decision to do nothing is bold as well.

    Side note: The commercial features famous daredevil Evel Knievel who is known for this crash; you can watch - he survived.

    Double side note: I have been to the Evel Knieval Museum in Topeka, Kansas and it...is...AWESOME.

THE BIG TAKEAWAY: ​ 
  • ​"The essence of strategy is choosing what not to do." - Michael Porter, Harvard Business School Professor considered to be the guru on strategy
Section No. 3: What to watch this week
Image: NHL
📺 Here's what I will be watching this week:​​
 Section No. 4: Quick info and dogs
 Image: Pexels
Here are some quick links:
  • 🎓 Learn: View strategy guru Michael Porter's LinkedIn profile.
  • 💼 A business life hack: Backspace for the iPhone calculator. How did I not know this!
  • 💪 Inspiration: The NFL's No. 2 pick honors his mom. Quite an advance Mother's Day gift)
  • 🐕​  Smile: Our weekly dog video. ENJOY! 
Section No. 5: Have fun today
Find the invisible cow. Why I played this more than once I don't know.
  • Not your thing? Then this site should do it.

Let's all laugh more. Please.
That's all for now

Thanks for reading and I hope you are enjoying this newsletter.

​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

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