33 Leadership Quotes And Lessons From The 33 Movie

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Brian Dodd on November 14, 2015 in Movies

 

The 33 is an AMAZING movie!  This film is the true story of 33 Chilean miners trapped below ground for 69 days and the above ground efforts to rescue them.
Good for the entire family to see, the following are 33 Leadership Lessons And Quotes from the movie to whet your appetite:

1. A Leader’s Primary Function Is To Evaluate Reality – 12,000 miners die each year.
2. Great Leaders Value People – Crew Chief Don Lucho, played by Lou Diamond Phillips, told the mine’s owner, “It is my job to keep them safe.”  To which he replied, “It is your job to pull out 250 tons per day.”
3. Leaders Recognize And Respond To Warning Signs – Failure to do so puts your team in danger.  Lucho had created a warning system using mirrors.  When the mirrors were broken, the mine’s owner ignored the signs putting his crew in danger.
4. Great Leaders Must Overcome Great Obstacles – “That’s not a rock.  That’s the heart of the mountain.” – Mario Sepulveda played by Antonio Banderas
5. Unity Is Vital For Personal And Team Success – When asked to leave the mine’s area, the family members in a sign of solidarity refused to exit.
6. There Are No Shortcuts To Success – In a cost-savings move, the ladders in the mine’s chimneys were only partially constructed.  This prevented any initial hope of escape.
7. Prayer is always the first response during crisis.
8. Having A Title Does Not Make You A Leader – Just because you have a title does not make you the leader.  Though Lucha had the title, Sepulveda was the true leader of the miners.
9. The Only Appreciable Asset Leaders Have Are People – No matter what you have done, God can still use.  You’re never too far down, literally like the miners or figuratively like some of you, to be saved.
10. Great Leaders Will Do Anything To Serve Their Teams – “Our family will dig us out with their bare hands if they need to.” – Sepulveda
11. Great Leaders Are Dealers Of Hope – “I believe we will make it out of here because I choose to believe it.” – Sepulveda
12. Successful Leaders Create Options – When there are no options leaders just start doing something.  Though they did not have a full-proof plan, the rescuers began drilling anyway.
13. Small Victories Create Huge Momentum – Just simply getting the mine’s lights turned on gave the miners momentum and hope.
14. Christians Have A Hopeful Future – A Christian miner simply known as “Preacher” said, “There are a lot worse things than dying.”
15. Great Leaders Are Peace Makers – Preacher added, “Hate is for children.”
16. Great Leaders Bring Their Teams Peace And Comfort – When asked to pray, one miner said, “I don’t know the words.”  To which Preacher replied, “God doesn’t care.”
17. Great Leaders Meet The Basic Needs Of Their People – The government setup a triage area for the miners’ families.  This included shelter, food, medical services and a school.
18. Smart Leaders Know People Are Counting On Them – “I have a daughter and wife.  You have a wife and a baby on the way and they’re counting on you.” – Sepulveda to a younger miner.
19. Successful Leaders Count The Cost – When discussing how long the rescue attempt would take, one of the engineers said, “Sometimes impossible situations take a little longer.”
20. Great Leaders Are Decisive In Times Of Crisis – When times were becoming desperate, Sepulveda said, “Nobody’s eating anybody while I’m here.”
21. Great Leaders Create Great Memories – “I couldn’t be prouder of you than to share this last meal.” – Sepulveda
22. Humor Is A Leader’s Friend – Humor relieves tension and makes leaders approachable.  To get through tough times, the miners had a time of side-splitting laughter.
23. Learn From Your Mistakes – Each time a rescue attempt failed, the engineers learned a different way to attempt an extraction.
24. “A leader makes sure you don’t starve.  A leader keeps the light on.  A leader never gives up.” – Sepulveda
25. Poor Leaders Are Self-Serving – When things seemed bleak near the end, Chilean President Pinera was most concerned about how his administration would look.
26. A Leader’s First Priority Is Family – “Family is all we have.” – Sepulveda
27. Great Leaders Give Their Teams An Identity – Sepulveda said, “We walked in as miners.  We will walk out as miners.”
28. The Two Most Powerful Words In Leadership – When confronted with his signing of a possible book deal, Sepulveda told his fellow miners, “I’m sorry.”  These two words soothed bad feelings and created unity.
29. Desperation Gives Birth To Creativity – In a final effort to be rescued, the miners conducted a controlled explosion which could have brought the mountain down upon them.
30. Leaders Must Be Willing To Pay A Higher Price – The miners were told about a possible rescue attempt, “The guy who goes first is in the greatest danger.”
31. Leaders Are The First Ones In And The Last Ones Out – Team leader Lucho was the last miner to be rescued and brought to the surface.
32. Enduring Leaders Serve Others Expecting Nothing In Return – The miners were never compensated for their time trapped in the mine.  Wow!!!
33. Surviving Crisis Creates Community – The miners remain brothers to this day.

Once again, The 33 is an incredible movie.  Take your family and see it this weekend.
As a bonus, the following is a transcript of from Texas Longhorns head coach Darrell Royal’s locker room speech, played by Aaron Eckhardt, in My All-American, another quality movie opening this weekend:
“I want you to think about all the years we spent together.  The practices.  The weight room.  The heat.  The sweat.  The vomit.  The medina drills.  So difficult at some point everyone of you wanted to quit.  Don’t let all those hours you put into this endeavor go to waste.  In about one hour a gun is going to go off ending the game.  And at that point the world will know that the 1969 national champions will be the University of Texas Longhorns.”