What Ted Lasso taught me.

Please note: If you haven't watched Ted Lasso yet and are planning to then I think it best not to read this post, but rather come back to it when you're done. There are spoilers if you choose to read on.

Also, please note there is swearing in this post, so it may not be suitable for younger journeyers.

One of my all time favourite series has to be Ted Lasso. It was such a surprising find. When Tim and I started to watch it, we didn't really hold out much hope for it. You see, Tim and I have very different ideas of what constitutes a good TV show. I like heart warming, uplifting shows and Tim likes shoot 'em up, the world's depressing kind-of shows, so it is not very often we find a show that we both love. In fact, I can count them on one hand - Gavin and Stacey, Clarkson's Farm and Ted Lasso (let me know if I've missed one darling).

Ted Lasso is heart-warming and uplifting - right up my alley. It's also heart-breaking and realistic without that sense of dread that a lot of shows have at the moment. But most of all there is an air of optimism that permeates the whole series that helps you to believe in the fundamental truth - that we all only want to love and be loved.

This show moved me emotionally in so many ways and taught me, or rather, reminded me of the following lessons for life:

1. Be kind - Ted is the kind of guy you want as your friend. He's funny, personable, charming and caring. He genuinely cares about the people in his life. He's even kind to the people who are not so nice to him, showing that grace and integrity have not gone out of style. It doesn't take much effort to be kind to people, even the ones you not particularly fond of;

2. Be generous - Ted is always generous with his time. Every day making the shortbread that Rebecca loves and bringing them to her at work (possibly feeding her sugar addiction and definitely winning her over!). Ted is also generous with his time amongst the players and other staff at the club. Rebecca takes Keeley under her wing and is generous with her business and love advice creating a treasured friendship between the two. It doesn't take a lot of time or effort to show someone in your life some generosity, and it helps build mutually beneficial relationships;

3. Be curious - One of my favourite scenes is when Ted beats Rupert at a game of darts, telling him a story about how everyone always underestimates him and if they were just a bit more curious and asked questions they would know that he is a champion darts player. It's something that I often tell my nieces and nephews; to always remain curious about the people and places around you. You never know what you could learn. It could set you on a path you never dreamed of;

4. Be yourself - There is only one character on this show who epitomises this phrase - Coach. He is genuinely, authentically always himself and as you watch the series you grow to love his quirks. They result in some hilarious scenes. He does not apologise for who he is and neither should you!

5. Don't judge a book by its cover - Several of the characters are not what they seem. There's Jamie Tartt, the arrogant, football star, Roy Kent, the foul-mouthed, grumpy veteran player and Trent Crimm, sensation-seeking journalist. They all are painted by the script as being stereotypical of their parts and yet as the series moves forward you see that actually they are all decent guys just trying to make their way in the world. I ended up loving all of them. It is easy to make a rash judgement about someone. Next time you find yourself doing that, stop and be curious. Maybe you'll find a gem underneath that facade;

6. Learn from your mistakes - Nathan Shelley, the Wonder Kid, definitely learnt from his mistakes. Apart from Rupert, he was the only character I didn't like, that is until he redeemed himself by apologising for his actions and learning the lesson of humility. We all make mistakes but those of us who learn from them are the ones who move forward in our lives. Repeating the same mistakes over and over again and expecting different results does not a happy life make. Be willing to admit when you've stuffed up, learn where you went wrong and how you can do different next time;

7. We are all like onions - On the surface the characters of Ted Lasso look pretty one dimensional and stereotypical but as you watch you realise that each and every character is multifaceted and has depths that the show gently draws out. We too, are like onions, with layer upon layer of character and depth that makes us the people we are today. Ted, for example, always seems so happy and optimistic but then you find that actually he's dealing with crippling anxiety and panic attacks and you really have so much more respect for him;

8. Sometimes the only word to use is fuck! - Roy Kent would have to be one of my favourite characters. His use of the word fuck, shows just how versatile this word can be. It can describe a myriad of emotions and situations and as someone who has been known to have a bit of a potty mouth (sorry Mum), I find it extremely gratifying when I use it! Swearing can actually be so releasing and I highly recommend it, as long as you are using it as an expletive and not swearing at someone; and, finally

9. Love always wins in the end - I believe that the underlying theme of this show is that love is the answer...to everything! I'm not talking about romantic love, although there are some love stories in this show. I'm talking about the love you feel for your fellow human beings, the love you feel about what you're doing and the love you feel for yourself that allows you to make the hard decisions. Ted makes the decision to go home to be with his son, Nathan makes the decision to make things right with Richmond FC, and Coach decides to stay to be with Jane - they all made these decisions from a place of love. So too, should we make our decisions based on love, for that is all there really is.

Until next time...

Photo Credit: Vienna Reyes - Unsplash