28 Leadership Quotes And Lessons From Ford v Ferrari

It is time to update my The Top 20 Leadership Movies Of The Last 20 Years!  Ford v Ferrari is simply a masterpiece!

This movie tells the story of the 1966 24 Hours of Le Mans and the Ford corporation’s desire to challenge Ferrari for supremacy.  The film centers on the relationship between car designer Carroll Shelby, played by Matt Damon, and driver Ken Miles, played brilliantly by Christian Bale.  These are two of the greatest actors of this generation and perform at the highest level.

Ironically, their main challenge is not the Ferrari corporation, its drivers, or the course.  Their greatest challenge was the bureaucracy of Ford and its executives Henry Ford II and Leo Beebe.  Beebe, played by Josh Lucas, was a particular problem because of his desire to run the racing program and take credit for its success.

This movie will be a classic and should contend with Avengers: Endgame for Best Picture.  Unfortunately, they probably had as many GD’s in the movie you could and still keep it PG-13.  Past that, it’s spectacular.

The following are 28 Leadership Quotes And Lessons From Ford v Ferrari:

1. Leaders Should Always Play To Their Strengths – Shelby said, “We’re lighter, we’re faster, and if that don’t work, we’re nastier.”
2. Leaders Never Confuse Activity With Accomplishment – Shelby said, “If you’re not winning, you’re losing.”
3. Brilliant People Can Be A Challenge – Whenever you lead high achievers, like Miles, they can be difficult.  But the results are worth it.
4. Shelby said of Miles, “He’s difficult but good.”
5. Successful Leaders Simply Think Differently Than Others – Lee Iacocca, played brilliantly by Jon Benthal, said, “We need to think like Ferrari.”
6. What Is Your Brand? – Speaking of Enzo Ferrari, Iacocca said, “His cars mean victory.  What if the Ford meant victory?”
7. You Can’t Live Off Your Parents’ Credentials – Ferrari said, “He’s not Henry Ford.  He’s Henry Ford II.”
8. Great Leaders Ask Great Questions – Iacocca asked Shelby, “Suppose Henry Ford II wanted to build the greatest race car the world’s ever seen, to win the 24 Hours of Le Mans.  What’s it take?”
9. A Skilled Craftsman Is Invaluable – Shelby responded, “Well, it takes something money can’t buy.”  Iacocca said, “Well, it can buy speed.”  Shelby replied, “It isn’t about speed.  You need a pure racer behind the wheel of your car.”
10. The Answer To Every Problem Is A Person – Shelby told Ford, “You can’t buy a win but you could buy they guy to give you a shot.”
11. Leaders Must Properly Evaluate Reality – Miles asked Shelby, “You’re gonna build a car to beat Ferrari with a Ford.” To which he replied, “Correct.”  Miles then asked, “And how long did they tell you that they need it?  Two, three hundred years?”  Shelby responded, “90 days.”
12. Smart Leaders Should Follow Their Passion More Than They Follow Money – Shelby said in a speech, “There are a precious few who find what they have to do.”
13. Great Leaders Know Who They Are – Shelby concluded the speech by saying, “My name is Carroll Shelby.  I build race cars.”
14. Just Because You Like Someone Doesn’t Mean They Should Be In Charge – Shelby told Ford, “You can get Doris Day behind the wheel if you want to lose.”
15. No One Ever Built A Monument To A Committee – Shelby also told Ford, “You can’t win a race by committee.  You need one man in charge.”
16. Smart Leaders Trust Their Talented People – Shelby added, “This year you might be smart enough to start trusting me.”
17. Successful Leaders Are Clear Communicators – Ford said, “This isn’t the first time Ford Motors’ gone to war.  We know how to do more than push papers.  Go ahead, Carroll.  Go to war.”
18. A Man’s Performance Is In Direct Relation To His Wife’s Confidence In Him – Miles faced several challenges and disappointments.  However, his wife always believed in him.
19. Leaders See First.  Leaders See Farther.  Leaders See Things Others Do Not. – Ken Miles, in a very poignant moment, said to his son Peter, “Look out there. Out there is the perfect lap. You see it?”  Peter replied,  “I think so.”  Miles said, “Most people can’t.”
20. Miles also told his son, “As the car speeds up, everything else slows down.”
21. Successful Leaders Know Their Limits And The Limits Of Their People – Miles to Shelby, “If you’re going to push a machine to its limit, you have to have sense of where that limit is.”
22. Talk Is Cheap.  Action Is Valuable. – Shelby told Leo Beebe, “While we’re here talking, he’s (Miles) out there (on the track) getting it done.”
23. There’s A Difference Between Exposure And Experience – Ford was a fan of racing but then Shelby put him in a car.  This brought him to tears.  He then had a unique appreciation for the drivers.
24. Do Not Confuse Appearance With Effectiveness – Miles said after looking at the Ferraris, “If this were a beauty pageant, we just lost.”
25. Smart Leaders Make Real-Time Adjustments – Shelby told Beebe about changes they were making during the race, “Plans change.”
26. Successful Leaders Strive For Perfection – Miles said, “You can’t make every lap perfect but I can try.”
27. The Greatest Leaders Get Their Entire Teams Across The Finish Line – Miles slowed down allowing the three Ford cars to all cross the finish line together.  His wife said, “He brought them all in together.”
28. “Sometimes they don’t get out of the car.”

Once again, Ford v Ferrari is an absolutely spectacular movie!!!  I cannot recommend it enough.