Ted Lasso is a Business Story: Friendship Is a Leadership Skill

Episode 6: “Fire Rupert. Build Diamond Dogs.”

This episode is a love letter to chosen family, emotional support systems, and the kind of business friendships that don’t just cheer you on... they hold you down.

We’re talking about the difference between Rupert energy and Diamond Dogs energy, because if you’ve ever been burned by a collaborator, ghosted in your hardest moments, or told that “business isn’t personal,” then you know how lonely leadership can get.

I also share what happened when I spent all of 2024 rebuilding my support system and how that changed everything. In business, creativity, and life. If you’ve never known what true, non-transactional support looks like, this one’s for you.

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Transcript

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In Ted Lasso, there's a stark contrast between Ted's leadership and Rupert's manipulation. Where Ted listens, Rupert dominates. Where Ted builds trust, Rupert hoards power. Where Ted creates connection, Rupert manufactures control. And today we are talking about the business world's dirty little secret. What happens when entrepreneurship stops being a calling and starts acting like a cult? Hey, hey! It's Mary Williams and this is the School of Moxie podcast where we use your favorite TV shows to talk about real business, real leadership, and real damn life. This season, it's Ted Lasso time, and in this episode we are talking about the culty side of coaching, the dangerous side of influence, and what to do when your mentor starts feeling more like a messiah. Don't forget to subscribe for weekly Woo Crew updates at sensiblewoo.com/subscribe. Let's get one thing straight. You can absolutely build a purpose-driven business that feels sacred, but the moment your brand becomes a belief system and your community becomes a congregation, and your audience is expected to worship, instead of think; you've stopped running a business, you have started running a cult. Now, I don't say that lightly, but if you've spent time in the online business space, you've probably seen it felt, it maybe even been swept up in it. The love bombing. The "If you don't join now, you are not ready to receive." The trauma bonding disguised as community care. The founder who's always right. Even when they're not. I've seen it. I've been inside it. I've coached inside other people's programs and watched the subtle shift from mentorship to manipulation, and here's what I noticed. It's never loud at first. It starts small with a carefully curated group dynamic with emotional storytelling that creates dependency with boundaries that slowly dissolve under the weight of access. And if you are not careful, the whole room starts to bend around the founder's feelings. You'll hear phrases like "high vibe only," or "you are out of alignment if you question this" or, "Hmm you're just not ready." That's not empowerment, that's control in a cashmere hoodie. Let's skip back to Ted Lasso. Ted builds community without centering himself. He doesn't need to be the smartest person in the room. He just wants everyone in the room to be okay. And the Diamond Dogs, that's a real support system. Messy, honest. A place where people admit they're wrong. Ask for help and get better together. Not trauma bonded, not financially entangled, just connected through choice, not coercion. But let's sit with the Diamond Dogs for a minute, because too many people listening might not actually know what real support looks and feels like. We talk about community a lot in business. We throw around words like sisterhood and accountability pods and sacred containers. But you know what most people don't talk about? The actual effort it takes to build trust. The Diamond Dogs aren't a vibe. They're a commitment. These men meet regularly. They tell each other the truth, even when it's uncomfortable. They call each other in when someone's out of line. They make space for honesty, for softness, for contradiction. There's no one leader, no one trying to be the hero. They hold the space together and yeah, sometimes they mess up. Sometimes they get it wrong, but they return, they repair. And what really blows my mind, a lot of people don't have this. They've never experienced it. When I started having more private conversations with people in my audience, I realized just how many folks are operating from relational trauma where loyalty meant codependency and vulnerability got used against them. So when someone like me talks about friendship, they don't know what that means. They think of the Ruperts of the world. People who manipulate backstab and build relationships like empires only valuable when they're producing something for them. But Ted Lasso shows us a different way. And here's the truth bomb. You don't get a Diamond Dog support system by accident. It's not instant. It takes sweat equity. It takes showing up. In 2024, while this podcast was sitting in the waiting room of my life, I spent every sliver of energy I had rebuilding my trust muscle. I evaluated who was in my life, who made me feel safe, who made me feel small, who actually showed up, versus who just clapped from the sidelines. And you know what? By the end of the year, I had an entirely rebuilt support system in business, in friendship, in community. And I want that for you too. But it's not going to come from a funnel. It's going to come from showing up again and again until you find the people who show up back. The Diamond Dogs aren't a brand. They're a behavior. They're built on mutual vulnerability, consistent presence, and a shared belief that growth happens in community, not isolation. Now, let's look at Nate's villain arc. He leaves Ted's team for Rupert's because he's seduced by power, by attention, and by hierarchy. But what does Rupert give him? Gives him a pedestal, a script, and eventually, a pit of regret because when you build your business around being adored, you forget how to be accountable. And when you create containers where people can't question you, you are not mentoring, you are manipulating. This is personal for me. I've been the coach who got projected on, I've had clients attach their healing journey to my availability. I have felt the weight of being somone's safe person, when what they really needed was a trauma-informed therapist. I've also seen people pitch their programs with spiritual language, so coded and twisted that it felt like a new religion. Things like "you're being called,","you're expanding," or "you're resisting,""your fear is keeping you small," and suddenly someone's nervous system response to a high pressure sales tactic, becomes their fault for not being ready. Y'all that is not coaching, that is gaslighting. Here's the thing. You can believe in your work. You can care deeply about your clients. You can hold space. But if your business can't function without you being adored, if your offers only work when no one questions your authority, if you brand yourself as a gateway to truth and all dissent is called resistance. You are in cult territory and you deserve better. Your clients deserve better. The industry deserves better. So let me offer this. It's okay if you've been caught up in it. It's okay If you followed a leader who turned out to be a little too obsessed with being followed, it's okay if you built a program that looked more like a spiritual pyramid scheme than a coaching container. This isn't a shame spiral. It's an exit ramp. You can come back, you can lead differently. You can rebuild your trust with yourself and with others because your business is not a religion. It's a relationship between you and the people you serve. Between your values and your voice, between your vision and the community you want to build. Let's stop preaching. Let's start practicing. This episode is brought to you by my membership newsletter, the Woo Crew. But before you commit to another subscription, did you know you can get a free reading every Saturday delivered right to your inbox, and it's designed just for entrepreneurs? Head over to sensiblewoo.com/subscribe to sign up. You'll get a weekly tarot reading to help you make aligned business decisions plus a peek at whether I am the right reader for you. There's no pressure, no sales funnel trap. It's your taste test, the ethical way. You'll also receive weekly updates about my online and in-person workshops and events. It's not just a newsletter, it's a weekly media magazine digest for intuitive entrepreneurs who want clarity, strategy and just the right amount of magic. If you've ever been made to feel like your intuition couldn't be trusted, if you've ever been told that your fear was the reason you didn't buy, if you've ever walked away from a program and felt like you left a religion. I want you to know, that was not coaching and it was not your fault. You don't need to earn your belonging. You don't need to abandon your discernment. You don't need to sacrifice your sovereignty to get support. The best mentors aren't the ones who promised transformation. They're the ones who help you remember yourself. And if you are leading right now, let this be your call to clean house. Audit your systems, check your language. Build containers that empower, not entrap. Your business can be powerful without pretending it is sacred. Let people evolve. Let them opt out, let them disagree. That's what real trust looks like. That's what real leadership does. Thanks for listening to the School of Moxie podcast. I'm Mary Williams, and this season is inspired by Ted Lasso, which is available to watch on Apple TV+. This podcast is written, produced, and edited through my media company, Moxie Studios in Vancouver, Washington. Make sure to subscribe to the School of Moxie podcast on your favorite podcast app and also on YouTube. Leaving a five star review helps other listeners find the show, and it is always deeply appreciated. And hey, if this episode stirred something deep for you, send it to a biz bestie who's looking for a real community, not just another congregation. You're not alone, and you don't need to build like that in order to build something great. I'll see you next episode.