Be Curious, Not Judgmental

Speaker 1 (00:00):

Just a quick heads up that these are adults having adult conversations about things that take place on a show where the adults use a lot of adult language, all this to say there might be some salty language ahead. So please plan accordingly.

Dimple (00:17):

What would Ted Lasso do? This is a question that we explore in each episode of this podcast, we take the lessons we learn from Ted Lasso and we apply them to the real world through the lens of leadership and positive psychology. My name is Dimple Dhabalia,

Jeff (00:32):

And my name is Jeff Harry, and neither of us have ever recorded a podcast. But as Ted Lasso says, taking on a challenge is a lot like riding a horse. If you're comfortable while you're doing it, you're probably doing it wrong.

Dimple (00:46):

We hope you enjoy this episode as much as we enjoyed making it. And that it helps you find new ways to believe. Alright, welcome to What Would Ted Lasso Do? This is our introductory episode. We wanted to give all of you listeners a chance to learn a little bit more about us, why we decided to take on this project and I guess kind of our hopes and intentions for what we want to share with all of you. So my name is Dimple Dhabalia

Jeff (01:25):

And I'm Jeff Harry.

Dimple (01:28):

And, uh, we are both huge fans of Ted Lasso. Like so much of the world is right now. And we decided to start this podcast. So I'm just gonna turn it over to you to talk a little bit about why were you interested in working on this project?

Jeff (01:43):

So you had come up with this idea and then asked me to explore this with you. And I guess the idea of what would Ted Lasso do when I think of that question, that is what we are on. We are on this random journey. I feel as if just like he went to England to explore, we are going off this podcast adventure to, I don't know, figure out what we could glean from this and being that our backgrounds are in positive psychology and leadership. Well, we both felt like we could come up with a different perspective or, you know, a different, uh, breakdown of why we're so fascinated with this show. And for me, you watched Ted Lasso numerous times, right? How many times?

Dimple (02:29):

A lot, like, like at least like eight or nine times all the way through.

Jeff (02:33):

And I've only seen it once. And I saw it a long time ago when my sister introduced to me and was like, you need to watch this and we gotta binge watch it in two days. So like, I didn't really remember most of it. So as you'll hear in the many of the episodes, I'm rewatching each episode right before we hop on the podcast record. So I'm super amped because there are all these ideas that are gleaned in a 30 minute show. And I never thought this was possible, especially based off of how I was even introduced to Ted Lasso, because I first saw Ted Lasso when he was doing those promo videos for NBC’s like English Premier League. So it was just this funny character that didn't really have any depth and then I was introduced to the show and was like, oh my gosh, you're going for all my fields. That's where I started.

Dimple (03:26):

<laugh> yeah. So for me, I was actually introduced to Ted Lasso through my brother-in-law and, uh, my sister and brother-in-law had been staying with me through a good chunk of the pandemic and he had found this on Apple TV. So our thing was Friday nights, we were always trying to like find good things to watch. And he kept telling my sister and I, oh my gosh, we need to watch this. And all we saw was it's a show about soccer and <laugh> the, my only like real knowledge of Jason Sudeikis at the time was really just sketch comedy, which was fine. But, you know, it wasn't necessarily something I, I needed to watch on a Friday night. And so we kind of pushed it off for a couple weeks. And then finally, like we gave in and we were hooked like immediately after the first episode. And the problem was that it was right at the beginning when they first started. And so they were dripping the episodes a week by week, like old school. We were just like, we couldn't wait until the next Friday to, to watch the next episode. So I really enjoyed it. And then since then, like, like I said, I kept watching it and rewatching it. And one day, um, I was getting ready in the morning and I was thinking about an issue I was having at work. And I had this moment where I was like, I wonder what Ted Lasso would do here. And it just was like this like Bing! moment where I was like, oh, you know, like there are so many great lessons in this show. And like you said, given our background in positive psychology and a lot of the leadership work that we do, I was like, it'd be so interesting to look at each episode through that lens. And the reason that I asked you to join me, and so for the listeners, the reason I asked Jeff to join me was because he is genuinely one of the funniest people that I know. And quite often, when I'd watch the show, I'd have this moment where I'd be like, oh, I could totally see Jeff like saying that or doing that. I know myself. I tend to be very serious, and as you'll hear in the upcoming episodes, I'm like that person who like dives very deep into the details of things. And so Jeff is such a good counterbalance to that. Um, I feel like we do a great job of, of bringing both sides into the discussion. So hopefully that'll be something that all of you will enjoy as you move through each week.

Jeff (05:41):

And the other thing, you know, specifically around positive psychology, you know, for people that don't, you know, aren't as familiar with it, there are many ways in which we describe it, but it's one of the ways in which I like to describe it is like other people matter and really focused on double downing on what's good. And what I find fascinating about Ted Lasso is that's exactly what he does a majority of the time. So he's exploring how to be optimistic in such a pessimistic world. That's the world we live in. We have to go into these organizations or talk to people that are, you know, basically given up sometimes <laugh> and we're like, oh my goodness. You know, with our Ted Lasso spirit and our believe sign, and we are trying to like garner some hope. So it's fascinating to watch over the, for season, how quickly he's able to impact people over the span of what I seemed like it was weeks, right? Like the season's not that long, like the actual soccer season's not that long to actually have an impact on people. And it actually gives us hope because then during the week, or at least at the beginning, we were like, all right, what, how are we gonna apply this to our lives? You know, okay. This episode's like all about curiosity. How am I gonna be more curious? And then later on, we were like, all right, we should just wait for moments, because there're gonna be moments throughout the week where we're gonna have to ask ourselves that question, what would Ted Lasso do and see what actually happens? So we also process that in each of our episodes.

Dimple (07:21):

Yeah. And to your point, uh, that definitely evolved over, over the, from the beginning towards like the end. So, uh, where we did start off initially picking like one thing we were each gonna focus on, which was really hard because that situation didn't necessarily come up. And so, yeah, when we finally shifted over to just trying to go through life, operating with that question in the back of the mind, like, you know, what would Ted Lasso do in this situation was, was much easier. And, and yeah, it was pretty amazing to like, think about the things that came up for each of us. Yeah. I, I really enjoyed that part of it. And we explore like a lot of really interesting themes over the course of 10 weeks, all kinds of aspects of leadership. And so if you're a leader in your organization, or even if you're not, I think, you know, what the show has definitely taught us is that there's leaders at every level, but there's so much that we can learn, um, in terms of different types of leadership and how people show up. But the show does a lot around relationships, around you know, the idea of positivity and really looking like we talked a lot about toxic positivity versus, you know, having positive emotions. We talked about things like forgiveness, um, which was such a core, um, element of the show. So a lot of really incredible themes, um, that we kind of dug into, but for all the die-hard fans of the show, uh, we also really just talk about the episode a lot, like the different aspects of it. We bring in some of the, the fun facts and trivia that we have found online. And so a lot of just like, it's, I feel like it's a good, well-rounded exploration of the show, hopefully from a little bit of a different perspective. Cause I know that there are a lot of podcasts out there right now focused on the show, but this was definitely, it was so much fun to just sit down and talk about this every week.

Jeff (09:08):

I feel also we did a really good job of breaking down the episode in the whole show. I, I really liked that part. Actually. I was quite proud of us actually for that <laugh> we were in like me and you are all over, we were like, okay, first scene, let's keep going. And what you'll find, which is really interesting is so I'm like, you know, off the cuff, just talking about random stuff that like I'm inspired by from this part of the show, and then Dimple will come in with like the true nerdy fact and be like, let me tell you about this song. And the book that this person is holding right now is significant and I'm, I'm horrible at details. So I don't even notice. And I'm like, oh my gosh, like the, the book they were holding while they were standing on the treadmill matters, like I don't even know that matters. So that's the part I find really interesting because I'm like, oh, okay. So after a while I just started leaning, you know, I, I don't know if you even know this, but I started leaning on you to be like, tell me the nerdy details, the, the, what is it, the gems, I forgot what else they call them the nuggets of truth and yeah, the spoilers, all that stuff. Because I, I didn't pick up on all that.

Dimple (10:20):

I love that every time I watch it, I find something new, but a lot of really eagle-eyed people out there and some really great groups of people out there that are talking about these things. And we mentioned some of those people in the show as well, if we have found particular ideas from them. But yeah. You know, just talking about what we love about the show, I mean, for me that the attention to detail that they have created in the show is incredible to me from everything, like you said to the books, to the music, it's just so layered and nuanced. And I, I love every aspect of it. And it's just so funny. Like it's just, so funny

Jeff (10:56):

And this might be a surprise to many people that are listening to this, but I have not watched Season 2. I have actually held out for this podcast. <laugh> so that's why I'm not part of any like Ted Lasso group or any of the things. So, yeah. So I'm quite fresh to this, while Dimple knows much. You are the wise one,

Dimple (11:24):

<laugh> it just makes it really hard though. Cause uh, I wanna talk to you about so many other things, but I think it definitely adds to the discussion. So that's a little bit about the show. It's a little bit about why we're doing this. Um, a little bit about us.

Jeff (11:39):

I, um, love to heal workplaces. This is why Ted Lasso really resonates with me is, you know, I use positive psychology in play, uh, to create psychologically safe workspaces, but really more about like healing divisions in the workplace. Healing, uh, divisions between managers and staff and just like making work more enjoyable again. And I feel why Ted Lasso so resonated with me is, is seeing how he was walking into a toxic environment and how simply being himself he could transform with the help of many people, mind you, but with the help of many people transform a whole town, as well as a team just by, you know, showing up and being Ted Lasso <laugh>

Dimple (12:35):

Yeah. So I spent the last like 20 years or so in public service and I just left the government this past August and started my own company called roots in the clouds. And really our focus is on putting the human back into humanitarian. And so the idea is that, you know, there's all these helpers out there in the world doing amazing work, helping other people. And we really wanna shift the focus onto them as well. Um, and really have organizations that recognize the humanity in their own workforce. And so starting with our leaders, making sure that they are operating as human-centered leaders, like a focus on wellbeing and just creating spaces of equity and belonging. So that's a lot of what I do and everything that I think both Jeff and I do is very deeply rooted in positive psychology. So yeah. So that's kind of the, I guess, expertise that we bring into this podcast, uh, to help you kind of see things maybe from a different perspective as you are watching the show. And I will say, um, obviously there are gonna be spoilers. So <laugh>, if you have not watched the show yet, we really recommend that you, um, start watching it as you listen to the podcast. So watch the episode and listen to the podcast, or if you have already watched it, watch it again and start over, um, with us. And then we really hope that you'll engage with us. So, um, there are different places where you can do that. So if you are using that question of what would Ted Lasso do, we'd love to hear about your experiences, things that you know, where, where did that question come up for you? How did it play out? What lesson did you apply and come and talk to us about it. So you can do that on, um, Twitter or Instagram. We are, um, @wwtldpodcast or on our website, um, which is wwtldpodcast.com where we will also have a full transcript of the show every week. So we love hearing what other Ted heads think, uh, about the episode, things that they took away. And we don't always know everything and we definitely don't have enough time to cover everything. So there may have been things we missed. So yeah, so we really wanna hear from you as well and engage on that level.

Jeff (14:46):

And I will say also the question of what would Ted Lasso do, even if you don't let us know, we would love for you to let us know, but even if you don't, if you simply just pose that question once a day or, you know, a few times a week, watch how things change, watch how, like the paradigm shifts in some ways, because we've been just been doing it over the course of the last, I guess, I don't know, couple of months. And it's fascinating how we've been able to approach different challenges in ways that actually are much healthier, you know, and we study this stuff for a living and we still forget how to do it. So simply asking that question, What would Ted Lasso do, you know, has made me much more curious, much more self compassionate, much more compassionate for others and much more patient in ways that I did not expect when I first started this podcast, part of the random adventure that I feel like I'm on.

Dimple (15:49):

Yeah, no. And I think that's part of the beauty of this show too. It's so relatable and human and it really touches on so many of the fears and challenges most of us encounter, but it's helping us to see that we don't have to, we can get away from these outdated ways of thinking and, and be in a different space. Yeah. So super excited. This is a first podcast for both of us, you know, we hope you enjoy it and would love if you do enjoy it, uh, to ask that you please, um, go and subscribe to it, share the news with all your friends and fellow Ted heads. And once you've listened to it, if you're so inclined, please leave us a five star rating on Apple Podcast. We mentioned in our, we have no idea like exactly what all the mechanics are behind this, but we have learned that it helps. So anything you can do to kind of help us out, we would be super grateful. Um, and of course we appreciate you very much. Yeah. So I, that's all for me. Do you have anything else you wanna add, Jeff?

Jeff (16:50):

Barbecue sauce!

Dimple (16:52):

Barbecue sauce. All right. Thanks everyone. Thanks so much for listening to ‘What Would Ted Lasso Do?’ If you got any nuggets of Ted Lasso wisdom from this episode, try them out in your life and let us know what happens @wwtldpodcast on Twitter, Instagram, or at our website, wwtldpodcast.com, where you'll also find the full transcript of the show. We love hearing what other Ted heads took away from the episode or details or perspectives that we might have missed.

Jeff (17:24):

And if you do like the show, please subscribe and head on over to Apple Podcast and leave us a five star rating. It all helps. We don't know exactly why, but it does. So in the spirit of believing in hope, believing in believe, please help us out

Dimple (17:42):

And thank you to Podify and Sam Davidson for producing our show, to Kajal Dhabalia for our visuals and graphics and Kenzie Slottow for our theme song. And most of all, thank you to all of you for listening.

Jeff (17:53):

Ted Lasso could simply just be another show to binge watch. Or if we challenge ourselves to consistently ask the question, what would Ted Lasso do? It could change the trajectory of your life. It has for us

Dimple (18:09):

So join us again next time as we explore another episode and ask ourselves, what would Ted Lasso do?