S03E63 Its a Hard Knock Life - Three Leadership Lessons from the NY Jets

The anticipation was overwhelming for the Jets this season. Much of that disappeared after Aaron Rodger's devastating injury this week. But what can we take away from what's happened so far? Today, we'll be walking through the riveting journey of the New York Jets preseason as covered in the reality sports documentary, Hard Knocks. As we unpack their compelling narrative, we will discuss insights on personal responsibility, the art of relishing everyday moments, and the nuanced dynamics of competition. The Jets' resilience, particularly in the face of their star player Aaron Rodgers' season-ending injury, may offer a profound lesson in maintaining optimism amidst adversity.

This week's thankful is in direct opposition of the latest trend sweeping the fitness industry: the cold plunge.

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S03E63 Its a Hard Knock Life - Three Leadership Lessons from the NY Jets

[00:00:00] Sam Rhee: This season, and from now on, I'm a Jets fan. Before this, I've never been more than a casual pro football fan without a team to call my own. If you were to judge me by my past five years of fantasy football performances, it would appear that I know nothing about pro football, and my friends would probably agree with that emphatically.

Plus, if you saw Monday night's game versus the Bills, it would be an understatement to say the Jets have a tough road this year without Aaron Rodgers, who suffered a devastating season ending or even possibly career ending Achilles injury.

Regardless of what adversity the Jets will be facing this year, I will still be all in on the Jets. And that's because this was the first time I've ever watched the NFL show Hard Knocks, an extremely popular reality sports documentary show that for the past 20 years has followed NFL pro football teams during training camp.

This year they were at the Jets training camp. Now you may scoff and say that Hard Knocks is a PR snow job designed to make NFL teams look good. But from what I saw this year, there was enough in the human storylines, as well as the leadership and heart demonstrated by the coaches and the players that drew me in, and made me want to see them succeed, even if they are now facing nearly insurmountable odds, if you talk to the long suffering Jets fans right now.

But regardless of their upcoming year, there were three major leadership lessons that I took away from the Jets "All Gas, No Brakes" philosophy that I myself will be incorporating in my life in the future, even if the Jets prospects for this season look bleak.

The first leadership lesson that the Jets coaches emphasized was the personal responsibility to do more. You would think when working with professional athletes that motivation would be automatic.

These are elite individuals being paid a great deal of money to perform. You would think there would be no lack of personal motivation for them to strive to do their best.

But much of what head coach Robert Saleh talked about, especially at the beginning during team meetings, was to challenge each individual to do more than just what was asked of them. He said, what are you doing to find that little bit more to get us closer to being a great f*cking team? You finish practice, now what? You finish meetings, now what? You finish lifting, now what?

Now this does sound like something you might ask a high school or a college team, not a group of seasoned professionals. But the motivational challenges posed by the coaching staff were to ask these athletes what else they could do that would exceed expectations.

And that is something that I could pose to myself every day as well as others that I work with as well. What else could I do better, more than just what is asked of me, in any situation?

Should I just be satisfied with just checking off the box? Even for someone like me who's been working as a plastic surgeon for 18 years, that is something that I need to be asking myself every day after everything I do. I finished a task, now what? I know I can do better.

The next leadership lesson from Hard Knocks is something that the ill fated Aaron Rodgers said to the other quarterbacks in huddle.

He said, this camp is a long camp. Let's enjoy the little things every single day. Get time to laugh a little bit. Find a conversation at lunchtime with somebody new. Don't always sit with the same group. Get to know your teammates a little bit. That's part of the leadership role. Let's just enjoy the little moments. It goes by fast, and you get to be really old and gray, and savoring every little moment, so savor them right now.

Those are some great words. Now I know that there are many Aaron Rodgers haters out there, especially if you're a Minnesota Vikings fan. He is a veteran QB who at the age of 39 is regarded as one of the greats.

He played 17 years for Green Bay, winning the Super Bowl in 2010, and he was a four time MVP. He signed with the Jets this year, and anticipation had skyrocketed as the Jets had many other pieces of what seemed to be an amazing team, including one of the best defenses in the league and young, super talented skill position players.

Now, Aaron Rodgers has been outspoken at times, including his views on COVID vaccination, as well as the use of psychedelic drugs. But there's no doubt that he is one of the all time great quarterbacks. And his words to the other QBs, for someone who has been playing professional football for 18 years, really resonated with me.

For him to say, enjoy the little things every day, to reach out to others, to step outside your comfort zone and get to know your teammates. For a long time veteran to say that, that means a lot. And finding joy in your life every day, even during something as onerous as training camp, in which many established QBs may not even participate, or if they do only half heartedly, is meaningful to me.

It means whatever task you set yourself at hand to do, appreciate what you can from it, because even if it is tedious and boring, there may not be so many of these left. I may feel like a grizzled veteran at my job in life, but I can take these words to heart and I can benefit from it. And the fact that Aaron Rodgers sustained a serious injury on Monday makes his words even more poignant. You never know when what you love to do will suddenly be taken away from you.

The last lesson on leadership from Hard Knocks is a great message from Coach Saleh that he said in a team meeting. And the wisdom contained in this is enough in my opinion that it bears repeating in full. It's about categorizing players and people in life.

And my apologies to the coach as he delivers it much better than I will, and it's probably worth finding this video piece and seeing him actually say it.

Coach Saleh said, these four levels of competing represent a mindset that we all have complete control over. External factors like playing ability and injuries have no bearing on what level we stand.

He said, you've got commanders, you've got competitors, you've got contenders, and you've got survivors. I promise you everyone in this room falls into one of these categories.

At the bottom are your survivors. A survivor is someone who does just enough to get by. He coasts through his day and does not maximize his mental capabilities. This group loves taking the easy way out. They love it and they are so miserable that they will do everything they can to bring you along with them. The sad part is every organization has at least one, and I promise you, you can't hide.

The next level are contenders. A contender is someone who is motivated by external factors like playing time, money, fame, or the person he is going against. He will only reach his potential if the external motivators are threatened.

The third level, the one we seek, is a group of competitors. A competitor is someone who is internally motivated to be his best regardless of the situation. His place on the depth chart does not matter. Money doesn't matter. Fame does not matter. He is always trying to absolutely be his best. He can't be swayed because he's already maxing out his potential. This dude is trying to PR every day of his life.

He's got a championship mindset. And when you have a championship mindset, you embarrass the shitty ones and you make the great ones look normal.

The final one is the commander. He basically has all the traits of a competitor, with one exception. He brings people with him.

Saleh then asks his team, which one are you? You can't hide who you are.

Wow. Those are inspirational words that really made me think. What level am I at, honestly? What level are the people around me at? Who have I surrounded myself with?

I believe that there have been days and periods in my life where no doubt I have been at least at the lowest levels. I know and I can recall times where I have been merely a survivor or a contender.

But there have also been times, hopefully more often recently, where I've worked to be a competitor. Now I don't know if my strength lies much in being a commander, but it is something I aspire to and will continue to work on. I know some commanders in my life and they are truly able to inspire those around them to do their best.

Now maybe the Jets no longer have the external motivation of others believing they can contend for a Super Bowl this year. But if these circumstances would stop a contender from trying to succeed on a daily basis, a competitor would shrug this off and continue to work just as hard as if they believed a Super Bowl was within their grasp.

By framing my daily work and looking at those around me within these four levels, regardless of the level of adversity, is something that is inspirational and makes me want to step up and do better.

So now the first game of the season is done and the heartbreak is palpable for Jets fans. For a team whose only Super Bowl trip and win was back in 1968 over 50 years ago, and their last playoff appearance was in 2010, to see Aaron Rodgers get injured on the fourth play of the game after the buildup of training camp was absolutely devastating. And yet the Jets did manage to win the game with some stellar performances in the second half, and the admittedly horrific play of Bill's quarterback, Josh Allen.

But for the rest of the year, one can either say, same old Jets, hang your head and write the season off, or face this admittedly tremendous challenge head on, and cheer for a team with a monumental amount of talent and heart, and see what comes next. I really loved watching the preseason show with Garrett Wilson, Sauce Gardner, Xavier Gipson, and the story of all these Jets players giving their maximum effort.

And I am invested in seeing them continue to succeed despite whatever odds they may face this year. The beauty of sports for me has always been the human side and the inspirational performances that are captured both on and off the field. So as they say in Jet Life Stadium, J E T S, Jets, Jets, Jets. And hey, that still sounds pretty good to me.

I hope you have a sports team with whom you're invested in their success, win or lose. Who's your ride and die? Let me know.

Except if you're a Cowboys fan who the Jets play next week, you people can go pound sand.

My weekly thankful is hot water. More specifically, showering in hot water. Lately, I have been inundated with people around me doing cold plunges, buying ice by the bagful, and dunking themselves in 40 degree tubs. Every week, there is someone at the gym extolling the virtues of cold baths, how awesome and pain free they feel after submerging themselves in ice cold water. And kudos to them! I'm sure there are amazing benefits from freezing your nethers in a glacial pool.

But I am here to say that I will have none of it, at least for now. The true indication that humans became civilized and moved on from barbaric times is the ability to heat water and wash in it. And I have no intention of giving up hot water and suffering like a caveman.

For me, there's nothing more luxurious than taking a hot shower in the morning. Most of my best ideas have come from inspiration while standing in the hot shower. And it's the only time of day where I have five minutes to truly relax, take some slow deep breaths, and to find my moments of zen before I have to face the world.

And I like that water hot, like almost scalding hot. Open up those pores, maximize your calm, and embrace the warmth of the spray. Bless your hearts if you like the cold, I'll continue to enjoy the hot. Are you a cold plunge aficionado? I don't really need to hear from you because I already hear plenty from the people around me. But if you really want to try to convince me to try it too, feel free and let me know.

One last thing, thanks to all those who sent me their favorite CBD products after hearing me talk about CBD last week, I will be trying all of them and maybe in the future I'll devote some time to what my experiences were with them.

And as always, DM me @BotoxAndBurpeesPodcast on Instagram or leave a comment at YouTube.com/@BotoxAndBurpees. Thank you.