Jerry Seinfeld on “The Right Way”
I’ve written it before – Right now I feel Jerry Seinfeld is producing the best leadership content out there. As an example, check out this exchange in his 2017 with Harvard Business Review:
“You and Larry David wrote Seinfeld together, without a traditional writers’ room, and burnout was one reason you stopped. Was there a more sustainable way to do it? Could McKinsey or someone have helped you find a better model?
Who’s McKinsey?
It’s a consulting firm.
Are they funny?
No.
Then I don’t need them. If you’re efficient, you’re doing it the wrong way. The right way is the hard way. The show was successful because I micromanaged it – every word, every line, every take, every edit, every casting. That’s my way of life.”
For more leadership quotes and lessons from Jerry Seinfeld, check out 20 Leadership Quotes and Lessons from Jerry Seinfeld’s Duke’s 2024 Commencement Speech.
The 3 Greatest Leadership Abilities
Chicago White Sox outfielder Luis Robert Jr. is the type of player any club should be able to build around. He is only 26-years-old, a former All-Star and Golden Glover winner, and is under a very reasonable contract. Robert Jr. is also considered the team’s best player. There is just one problem.
Only once, 2023, has Robert Jr. played over 100 games in a season. In fact, a right hip flexor strain has caused him to miss the majority of the team’s games this year.
The three greatest abilities a leader has are availability, dependability, and reliability.
For most organizations, we need you when we need you. If we can’t count on you to be there, it will limit your potential growth with the company.
LinkedIn’s 2024 Most In-Demand Skills
Because of remote work, AI, and generally broken and anxiety-filled individuals since the pandemic, leadership (though still highly-ranked) is no longer the most in-demand skill. Per this LinkedIn article, Communication is now the most valued skill. Customer Service, which is actually communicating with customers and providing them solutions, is second. Leadership comes in third. The full list is shown below.
Leading From The Rear
Traditional leadership thought has always been the leader should be out front guiding and pointing the way. For the record, I agree with this but Mount Everest climbers Edurne Pasabán and Borja Santos Porras are providing a different perspective.
In their outstanding article Leadership and teamwork at high altitude: seven lessons from Everest, one of the lessons is “Lead from the back.” They state, “By staying behind, a leader can observe the dynamics of the team, understand each person’s challenges and ensure that no one is left behind. It is also metaphorical: true leadership is about serving others and fostering a sense of collective achievement.”
Their insights have me thinking – Is it perhaps better to lead from the front when casting vision, setting direction, and equipping are required, but then transitioning to the rear to provide wisdom, insight, empathy, and coaching based upon progress and team dynamics the better approach? Let’s find out.
For the list of all seven or Pasaban and Porras’s lessons, click HERE.
Cross-Industry Learning
The most successful leaders are those humble enough to learn from anyone. Non-profit leaders can learn valuable lessons from for-profit leaders, and vice-versa. People in the business community can learn from the athletic community, and vice-versa. And I could go on and on.
Boston Celtics championship coach Joe Mazzulla has developed a great friendship with 38-time major trophy winning Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola. In fact, the wonderful website Culture of Sport captured a photo of the two strategizing before the Celtics’s Game 5 victory this past week.
Of Guardiola, Mazzulla told reporters, “Dallas boasts one of the most intelligent defenses … We had to think outside the box to overcome them. Pep [Guardiola] guided me on transitions and positioning the players effectively.”
This cross-sport learning relationship and mentoring is a model for all successful leaders to follow. In fact, in a couple of hours I will be having a learning lunch with someone from the education community. Maybe it will make me as successful as Joe Mazzulla!
To learn from Pep Guardiola just like Coach Mazzulla, read 35 Qualities Of A Once-In-A-Generation Leader.
Conclusion
The five potentially career and life-changing lessons we learn from some of today’s most successful leaders are:
- Do it the right way, which is the hard way.
- Are available, dependable, and reliable.
- Communicate exceptionally well.
- Lead from the rear as well from in front.
- Engage in cross-industry learning.
My latest eBook is available for download. The Top 65 Leadership Quotes Of 2022 Part 1 is a resource every leader should have. Great quotes bring clarity and put into words who we intuitively feel as leaders. They give us wisdom and insights which advance the mission and vision of our organizations. This eBook includes thoughts and insights from leaders like Warren Buffett, Nick Saban, James Clear, Dawn Staley, Jurgen Klopp, Jerry Seinfeld, and even Ted Lasso. This resource will take you about 10 minutes to read but a lifetime to apply. You will want to stop and ponder the implications of each quote. Click HERE or on the image provided for immediate download!