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The Power of Speaking Up: Lessons from Ted Lasso & Personal Growth
In this episode of Kathie's Coaching podcast, Kathie Owen shares a personal and powerful story about her experience with toxic work culture and the lessons she learned from the show 'Ted Lasso.'
Kathie discusses the importance of real leadership, emotional intelligence, and standing up for what's right. Through her journey, she draws parallels to characters and scenarios in 'Ted Lasso,' illustrating the impact of positive leadership and the consequences of challenging the status quo.
Tune in for an inspiring discussion on personal growth and the courage to speak your truth.
Timestamps:
00:00 Welcome to Kathie's Coaching Podcast
00:23 The Impact of Ted Lasso
02:03 Personal Leadership Journey
02:58 Facing Corporate Toxicity
03:52 Standing Up for Values
05:40 Pandemic Challenges and Control
07:44 Lessons from Ted Lasso
08:53 Empowerment and Conclusion
Hi friends and welcome back to the show. My name is Kathie Owen, and this is Kathie's Coaching podcast. And today we're diving into a story that's personal, powerful, and honestly long overdue. So let me start here. You know it's funny how the right things find you at the right time. After I gave my speech at Toastmasters on motivation, sports psychology, and the powerful book called Inner Excellence, one of my fellow members who is a distinguished Toastmaster, which is the highest award you can receive in Toastmasters. He came up to me afterward and said, you have to watch the show, Ted Lasso. You know, I kind of heard of the show, but I had no idea how deeply it would speak to me. The timing was perfect, so perfect. In fact, that I now see it as what Neville Goddard calls a bridge of incidence. One of those seemingly ordinary moments that guide you straight toward the clarity or breakthrough you didn't even know you needed. So if you've never seen it, here is a quick version about it. It's. Called Ted Lasso, and it's about American football coach who gets hired to manage a British soccer team, even though he knows nothing about the sport. But the show isn't really about soccer, it's about leadership. It's about kindness, it's about personal growth, emotional intelligence, self-awareness, and the power of even believing in people. So Ted's optimism and his emotional intelligence shake up a cynical team and transform a toxic culture one conversation at a time. And I can't tell you how many times I identify with each of the characters or their storyline that they're going through. It's just mind blowing. But there's this character on the show, his name is Rupert. He walks into a room with this energy that instantly makes my skin crawl. And it's not because he's loud or cruel in the typical TV villain kind of way, but because he's smooth, he's calculated and he's controlling. And every time he appears on screen, I feel this visceral reaction because I've met Ruperts in real life. You know, I worked for a company where the people in power had that same energy. So years ago I was in a leadership role where I truly love what I did. I created wellness programs that changed lives. I poured my heart into my work. But as time went on, I started noticing things that didn't sit right. Employees were being fired without warning. It was just like, okay, just fire them. Fire them. It was horrible. Some of my closest friends. Got fired and I didn't even get to tell them goodbye, which kind of broke my heart. But there was poor communication also from human resources, and there were these reward systems that felt random and uninspiring, like, just get a ticket. You win the big award and the people that won were not even around very long. It was just mind blowing. But there was also a lot of nepotism inside this company. There was a lot of favoritism inside this company and leadership that paraded as visionary, but was actually disconnected and really and truly ego-driven. so I spoke up to the CEO of the company. I didn't name names, but I did share content about quiet, quitting disengaged cultures, the importance of real leadership, not performative leadership. I talked about what happens when communication breaks down, and wellness is just a buzzword instead of a lived value. And somewhere along the way, human resources decided I had crossed the line. They took my content to the top and they twisted my intentions and they used it to paint me as the problem, but here's what stings the most. Not because it still hurts emotionally because honestly I've let that go, but because it showed me exactly what kind of culture I was dealing with. They asked my coworkers, my friends, to show them text messages I sent after I was let go. Private messages, an invasion of privacy that still shocks me to this day and. Not that I said anything that was wrong or anything, I actually just said, I'm so sorry. They let me go and they were looking at my content online, like I was just talking about. That's all I said. But one woman inside the company complied and told them what the messages were and she still follows me on Instagram and that's fine, but I'm not bitter. I'm actually awake and my story is something that needs to be shared. But I also wanna share something that still blows my mind. At the height of the Covid Pandemic, this same leadership inside this company forced us to get vaccinated. And if we didn't, we would be terminated. And yes, some were actually fired. This was a huge red flag for me because honestly, I was very hesitant. I don't even get the flu shot because I trust my higher power and my immune system Always but. I did it anyways because I cared about my team. I cared about my work and the greater good of my team, not actually the company in retrospect. But during the pandemic, this is really funny. We were required to wear protective goggles because at some point in time they believed the virus could be transmitted through our eye tissue. Yes. The entire company was forced to wear goggles. I would say, I guess they think we're gonna catch it just by looking at it. You know? That's just me. But. If that doesn't speak to the climate of fear and control, I don't know what does. I even had a conversation with one of the top leaders, someone I rarely spoke to, and I told her about the bad behavior I was witnessing inside the company. It was specifically a manager who was creating serious tension and serious dysfunction. I tried to address it. Privately and respectfully, and yet somehow human resources turned that too against me. When it all came to a head and I was let go, they actually denied my unemployment and it's still in litigation and it could take years. But here's the truth. I've let that go because here's what I now know. And this is what Ted Lasso reminded me of. Sometimes you're not fired because you did something wrong. Sometimes you're fired because you disrupted a system that profits off silence. I was never the problem. I was the voice they didn't wanna hear. I was the reminder that leadership should be about people, not so-called power. And now like Nate in Ted Lasso, who is one of the coaches that left Ted Lasso and went to work for Rupert on an opposing team, he walked away from that and I've walked away from the wrong team. Nate walked away from the head coach of the team that Rupert owned because he saw how Rupert was conniving and using people to gain his so-called status and so-called control. And it sounds so much like my old job, and that's what I mean about Rupert. I'm picking up that vibe intuitively from watching this show. So I don't share this to relive the past. I share it for anyone listening who has ever felt like they were punished for telling the truth, for doing what's right, for caring too much, and you are not alone. And more importantly, you are not wrong. You are the upgrade, the leader, the one that sees what others are afraid to see. And I'm here to tell you, you're not crazy. You're actually awake or conscious is what we could call it. And you are needed now more than ever. All right. Thanks for listening. I trust that you found today's episode helpful, and if this episode spoke to you, I'd love it if you would share it with a friend or a coworker who might need the reminder that they're not alone in this either. And until next time, keep leading. Keep loving and keep listening to that intuitive voice inside of you, because that voice, it's never wrong. And. Go check out the show, Ted Lasso. It is really good, really entertaining and very explaining of life in general and just cultures and what they can do and what kind of havoc they can cause, and also what kind of happens when you actually believe in your power. All right, that's my episode for today and until next time, I will see you next time. Peace out and namaste.
