3 Leadership Lessons I Learned From Voltron

I can’t be the only person with fond memories of childhood cartoons and one of my favorites was Voltron. If you’ve never seen this cartoon (really?), I’ll give you a quick rundown of the plot. The main characters were a group of five fighter pilots who operated mechanical lions and kept the peace on earth. Most of the time, they were able to take down the enemy, but at the end of each episode they were faced with an enemy that required a higher level of teamwork. This was always my favorite part of the show…where they would “form Voltron.” The five mechanical lions can be assembled to form a giant fighting machine… and it was unstoppable! Two of the lions would form the feet and legs, two would form the arms and body, and the fifth would form the head of the giant robot. Let’s look at the lessons we can learn from the Voltron cartoon on how to function as a successful team.

3 things Voltron taught me about leadership and teamwork

Teamwork is required to complete the big tasks.

A lot of times, your team can get away with an unbalanced offensive scheme, but against that big foe…the one who happens to have a very balanced defensive plan, your team will have to learn to trust each other to get the job done. Using our Voltron example, the other drivers knew they could count on each other to always do the same thing… they trusted their teammates because they had been consistent in their execution in the past.

Each member of the team knew that their role was appreciated.

Using volleyball as an example, if my setter suddenly tried to be a hitter…we’d be in trouble! We need her to do her thing and our blockers to block and our hitters to hit. If any one of them decides that he is not happy with the glory that he is receiving, the team will suffer. It is our job as your coach to remind you that everyone is important to the team and critical to achieving our goals. Whether starter or substitute, every person on the team is necessary for us to be successful.

They had a strong leader.

Teams have two leaders, the head coach and the floor captain…both must have confidence, preparation and determination. As a coach, it is our job to make sure the team is well prepared, is able to make adjustments in the game and is able to take advantage of any weaknesses the opponent may have. Your floor captain must operate at a high level of skill and must be constantly energetic…all while holding teammates accountable for their effort on the court or field.

Hopefully you can look at your team and see those three elements there… if not, you have a good starting point for a successful team.

If you want to see a minute clip of Voltron, click here…it’s amazing!