Business Leadership Lessons from 'The Bear'

Hey honeys and hustlers,

Anthony here! 👋🏻 I am never up to date with the current hit TV Shows (Hooray for the entrepreneur life!). Right now in my queue of “shows everyone was talking about last year” (aka that Angela won’t shut up about) is ‘The Bear.’

She likes this show so much that she even made a video about it so she had a reason to talk about Ayo Edebiri.

I won’t post any spoilers from season 3 since it just premiered, but let’s take it back. In season 2 they kept featuring a book, “Leading with the Heart” by Mike Krzyzewski (aka Coach K), the former Head Coach for the Duke Men’s basketball team. Maybe you’ve heard of him?

So much of the story ends up anchored around this book that I started to think it was product placement… for a book that was released in 2001. Nope, Coach K didn’t even know it was featured in the show! But he was nice enough to send Ayo a signed copy after the fact and offered to be in the show. I like his style.

The book is given to the character, Sydney, who finds herself needing to become a stronger leader within the restaurant. It acts as a guide for her transitioning from having a great creative skill to learning to lead a team.

This story arc engrossed Angela at the perfect time as she was expanding Rootful Media’s team and setting us up to take bigger shots.

Being a good creator and being a good leader are very different skill sets, and she has been learning a lot of the same lessons as Sydney in the show. The biggest lesson is that strong leadership starts with a strong team. To grow as a team, you have to build it out of people you can trust and give them enough room to grow individually.

Another critical lesson that comes as a shock in the transition from creator to leader is that being “good under pressure” is MUCH different than applying enough pressure to motivate a team without pushing it too far. Leading from the Heart takes a look at leadership that’s rooted in empathy and resilience. It sees the value behind getting to know your team individually and empowering them to reach their full potential.

If you want to just offload tasks, you can do that. But if you want to expand your team in a way that expands your overall business - you have to do much more than dictate and rule.

Happy Hustling,Anthony

In Readworthy News

// Grammarly will now have a plugin for Figma and FigJam. Designers everywhere can now rejoice.

// Buy from a Black Woman has partnered with H&M to kick off a tour highlighting Black women business owners. Their tour kicked off this weekend at Essence Fest in New Orleans. Here’s a video recap showing what may be coming to a city near you!

// Duolingo created a genius ad based on ‘The Bear.’ I couldn’t let this newsletter end without this hilarious video. 

// The Forks episode of ‘The Bear’ was based on the 95/5 rule, a blueprint for success. If you want to go down the rabbit hole with me, let me know your thoughts on Season 3 in the comments, or just write “Yes Chef!” so I know you read until the end.

Please Hustle Responsibly,

🤙🏾✨

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