As many people know, Ted Lasso is a popular television series that follows the journey of an American college football coach who is unexpectedly hired to manage an English Premier League soccer team. The twist? Ted Lasso has no experience with soccer. The team’s owner hired him hoping he’ll fail—part of a scheme to get back at her ex-husband, who loved the club [1].
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Over three seasons, Lasso’s optimism, emotional intelligence, and people-first leadership style gradually win over the team and its supporters. While he never becomes a tactical soccer genius, his ability to build trust, foster resilience, and create a positive culture becomes the foundation for the team’s eventual success [1].
It’s a heartwarming and funny story—but also a cautionary tale for business leaders.
The show leans into the idea that great coaching is about more than technical expertise. Ted’s success stems from his emotional intelligence, empathy, and ability to inspire. However, the show also makes clear that these qualities alone aren’t enough. Ted’s journey is marked by setbacks, self-doubt, and a growing recognition that he must understand the game—and his players—on a deeper level to lead effectively.
This is where the business parallel becomes clear. In today’s fast-paced environment, leaders don’t have the luxury of three seasons to learn what works best. Foundational leadership skills—such as active listening, feedback, and motivation—are powerful, but they must be paired with a deep understanding of the specific behaviors and challenges within a given organization.
As coaching has become more democratized, a cottage industry has emerged. Many firms now offer coaching programs or train leaders to become internal coaches. While this has expanded access, it has also created a gap. Coaching is often taught as a generic skillset, disconnected from the specific behavioral changes organizations need.
At its core, coaching is about behavior change. Whether it’s a senior executive trying to lead with more empathy or a frontline manager working to improve team performance, the goal is the same: helping people do things differently—and better.
But behavior change is highly contextual. The challenges faced by a customer service team are different from those in a manufacturing plant. That’s why effective coaching must begin with a clear understanding of current behaviors and performance outcomes.
A skilled partner can help leaders pinpoint performance gaps, uncover the underlying behaviors that need to be altered and craft a focused strategy for change. Only then does it make sense to build coaching capabilities—because now, those skills are aligned with a clear, actionable purpose.
Teaching coaching skills without first identifying the behaviors you want to change is like sending someone out to fish with the wrong bait. They might have the right technique, but they won’t catch anything.
Ted Lasso didn’t succeed because he was a great coach in a vacuum. He succeeded because he learned, adapted, and connected his coaching to his team’s needs. Business leaders must do the same.