[DAY 29 OF THE DEEP END PROJECT}
It’s unlikely that Friends didn’t touch your life in some way or the other. I don’t have the stats with but I’d go ahead and assume that it had been the greatest show in the television history until Game Of Thrones came along. And while these two shows are not comparable at all, I will fight you to my last day that GOT is greater than Friends.
The Reunion was a long time coming, for me at least. Over the years I have gone down the You Tube lane many times with mock up Reunion ideas and rumors. I was so excited when HBO announced it. Gosh, I didn’t know what to expect buy I’d be happy to see these 6 people together any day!
As I watched and laughed and cried watching the Reunion, a few things jumped out at me. Now remember when I watched the show, I was a teenager. This stuff would have never crossed my mind then. But today as a 37 year old business woman, I looked at them and all the things they said with a fresh pair of eyes.
5 lessons I took from watching the Reunion:
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They were all having so much fun
The Reunion gave us a peek of what was happening behind the scenes and it was impossible to miss that these people weren’t only doing their work. They were having so much fun
Infact, Jennifer Aniston shared on the reunion how she was simultaneously shooting for another pilot and she went to the producers of that show begging them to release her because she was “having so much fun” on friends. The producer in turn told her “that show will never make you a star.” Well, we all know what happened…
What does this mean for us as business owners? I’ve said this one before, I’ll say It again “if it isn’t fun, it needs to be deleted or delegated” THAT IS ALL!
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They were just doing their job
To them this was their job. They poured everything into it. And I just don’t mean the cast. The writers, the producers, the director, the whole team. They were making entertainment.
I am sure they didn’t start out with a “we’ll solve world peace kinda promise” but if you see the show you’ll see how many lives they impacted. How many lives they saved. It was emotional to watch it and it reminded me of the times I felt sad and depressed during my teen years and everything was fine for those 30 mins.
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They all doubted themselves, had self worth issues
They are the FRIENDS cast!!! Who would believe that they couldn’t, still cannot watch their own parts because they cringe every time they see it.
On the Reunion, Chandler confessed that he would start to sweat when he’d make a joke and won’t get any laughs from the audience. He never shared it with anyone but inside he was always looking for those rewards. I mean we are talking about Chandler here, can he more funnier?Sounds familiar right? If they can have self worth issues and still go on to create an epic volume of work that’s been talked about years later, so can you and me.
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They saw the best in each other
Even though each one of them doubted their own work, they beyond a shadow of doubt saw the best in each other. Lisa Kudrow confessed that she doesn’t watch her parts, to which Jennifer Aniston replies “what?? But you were so good!!” It was shocking to Jen that Lisa couldn’t see the greatness because she did.
And that’s why we need friends, peers and mentors in our lives. We’ll never reach a point where we stop doubting ourselves. Believing in your Self Worth is not one and done thing. You have to choose it every single day. And, sometimes those friends, peers and mentors remind you of your greatness.
I am so lucky to have such mentors and friends in my life!
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They turned even the plain lines into iconic scenes
First of all they won my heart when they brought in Jon Snow for a cameo. He pointed out how freaking amazing and talented these 6 individuals were.
Remember the iconic “Pivot” scene with Ross. If you are a true Friends Fan, you cannot hear the word Pivot without Ross’s voice in your ear and then Chandler going “Shutup, shutup, shutuuuup!” I am chucking writing this.
Now if you saw those lines on paper, it doesn’t sound like anything extraordinary. It’s the plainest of plane dialogue. But what they did to it, whooo!!! They added their own personality, their own quirkiness and together they created one of the most unforgettable scene in Friends history.
How can you bring in your personality and quirkiness in your offers, your newsletters, your content? Can you get creative and turn something plain into iconic greatness? Trust me, you have it in you to do that!
The biggest lesson of all though is that when you have an idea and you believe in it with all your heart then all you need to take is the first step. You will be led to the whole staircase in front of you.