Two years ago, we got to experience the horror of Five Nights At Freddy’s. It’s the story of Mike (Josh Hutcherson) taking a job as security at Freddy Fazbear’s Pizza. He learns there’s something not right about the animatronics there.
We’re now witnessing the second movie in the Five Nights At Freddy’s franchise. Part 2 was released this past weekend. The film brought back the freaky animatronics and took it to another level.
Mike and his sister, Abby (Piper Rubio), have been struggling since the events of the first film. Abby longs to see her friends again. But her friends aren’t real. They’re the animatronics from the first film:
- Freddy Fazbear (Kellen Goff)
- Chica (Megan Fox)
- Bonnie (Matthew Patrick)
After the events of the first film, the animatronics were severely damaged. Mike constantly promised to fix them. Yet he never did. He had no intention of doing so. All he wanted was for Abby to make friends with real people.
But when another animatronic, The Marionette, comes to life, Mike and Abby are in a fight for their lives… along with the citizens of their town.
It’s a great setup for leadership lessons. Let’s take a look at those in today’s Reel Leadership article.
Quotes And Leadership Lessons From Five Nights At Freddy’s 2
1. Guy:
Be sure to stick around for a great surprise at the end.
The film opens with a guy (if you know who he is, let me know in the comments) talking. He tells the audience to be sure to stick around. There’s something great at the end of the film.
What’s this all about? Five Nights At Freddy’s 2 had a live-action post-credits scene along with a hidden audio message. These two things sent the theater audience into a frenzy. They were foreshadowing what was to come.
And the filmmakers wanted people to know to stick around for them.
Great leaders have insight into what’s coming. Whether it’s because they helped plan what’s to come or because they’ve been privy to insider information. They know what’s coming.
Yet, far too many leaders keep that information to themselves. They let their employees sit in frustration, not understanding what’s going on behind the scenes.
You won’t be able to fill your team in on everything. You can fill your team in on more than you are right now.
Let your people know what exciting things are coming.
2. Offer people a seat at the table:
A young, dark-haired girl, Charlotte (Audrey Lynn-Marie), sat at the base of the stage at Freddy’s. She’s waiting for the animatronics to appear from their trap door.
A young Vanessa (young – Miriam Spumpkin, grown up – Elizabeth Lail) approaches her. She invites Charlotte to the table of her friends. She didn’t want Charlotte sitting alone.
Great leaders see people who may be on the fringe of the organization. These people may be struggling to form relationships. They may not exactly fit in.
But these leaders know that these people are important and invite them to a seat at the table.
Who needs to be invited to a seat at your table? Find them. Then invite them.
3. Listen:
Charlotte begins to tell the adults at Freddy’s that a young boy is in trouble. She goes to as many adults as she can.
Do you remember what they did? They brushed her off. They told her to go away. To leave them alone.
Charlotte went into the back area of Freddy’s. She found the young boy. She saved him. At a cost.
William Afton (Matthew Lillard) had, who we believe to be, Garrett in the kitchen of the non-franchised Freddy Fazbear’s. Charlotte rushed in to save him. Only to be stabbed by Afton and die.
The adults who didn’t listen cost Charlotte her life.
It’s important to listen to those on your team. They have valuable insight you may miss.
Your team members are interacting with a different group of people than you are. They’re seeing different things than you are.
Don’t ignore them because they’re not a leader. Listen to them because they’re aware of things you’re not.
4. Don’t be a negative Nancy:
Abby’s school was having a science fair. Her teacher, Mr. Berg (Wayne Knight), didn’t believe Abby was ready to have an entry into the fair.
Mr. Berg let Abby know this. And he was negative. He told her to give up. To just take the average grade.
It was heartbreaking to see a teacher, someone who is supposed to support and uplift, tear down and encourage giving up.
Don’t be a negative Nancy leader. There will be times when it will be hard.
Someone will mess up. Your project won’t go as planned. You’ll find yourself with fewer resources than you desire.
That doesn’t mean you get to be negative.
5. Rob (David Andrew Calvillo):
So… what happened here?
Rob was part of a TV show called Spectral Scoopers. Think Ghost Adventures, SurrealEstate, and other shows where crews hunt supposed supernatural events.
Rob and his castmates, Lisa (Mckenna Grace) and Alex (Teo Briones), were invited to the non-franchise Freddy’s to film its haunted grounds. They were invited by Michael (Freddy Carter), the main villain of FNAF2.
When the crew arrived, Rob asked Michael what had happened at the restaurant. He wanted to know the backstory before filming began.
Be interested. Be curious. Be willing to ask what happened and what’s happening.
The more background you have, the better prepared you will be to lead an organization.
6. Vanessa:
You can do this.
In the original Five Nights At Freddy’s, Mike had nightmares about his brother, Garrett. He found a way to investigate and learn more about the abduction while in his dreams.
Vanessa was struggling with the events from the first film. Mike encouraged her to try to do the same thing. She resisted and resisted. Until she finally decided to try it.
Vanessa began to give herself a pep talk. She started telling herself, “You can do this,” over and over again. Eventually, she entered her dream and took partial control of it.
Vanessa needed a pep talk. You may need a pep talk, too.
It’s okay to encourage yourself. To talk yourself up.
Tell yourself you’ve got this or you can do this. You’re going to be more right than you are wrong.
7. Stop trying to fix people:
Vanessa, Mike’s love interest, tells Mike that they need to talk. Mike tells Vanessa that he’s trying to fix everything. Himself, Abby, Vanessa…
Uh oh… We know this is trouble. Trying to fix someone you’re interested in.
It’s not our job to try to fix people. It’s our job to lead and love them.
Let’s stop trying to fix others. Let’s start caring for them.
8. Henry (Skeet Ulrich):
It’s so easy to be blinded by ambition.
Henry is Charlotte’s father. He was filled with grief after her death. Probably more so because he was Afton’s business partner.
He was fueled with ambition. He wanted bigger and better. But those ambitions blinded him.
Leaders can fall into the same trap as Henry. They can be blinded by ambition. Of what they can do.
Make sure you’re not being blinded by ambition. Make sure you’re paying attention to those around you who matter.
Ambition is good. Blind ambition is not.
9. Our methods can be ineffective:
Marionette unleashes the Freddy animatronics to wreak havoc on the town. One of the animatronics is sent to a house that includes a husband and wife.
The wife screams when she sees the animatronic in their house. The husband sees the animatronic and tries to stop it…
By throwing food at the animatronic.
You can see how ineffective this was. A killer robot being assaulted with food. The husband’s method was ineffective. It’s funny but ineffective.
Much like many of our methods can be.
We can act without thinking. We can try what we know doesn’t or won’t work. And then wonder what happened.
It’s because we’re using old, outdated, and ineffective methods.
Make sure your methods are effective.
10. You don’t have to live out a bad legacy:
Michael turned out to be Vanessa’s brother. She had never told Mike about him.
Michael said he would live out his father’s legacy. Vanessa should live it out as well, according to him.
What a sad situation. Michael was willing to live out a negative legacy. He was willing to hurt and kill others because that’s what his father did.
You don’t have to be like Michael. If you have a bad legacy in your life, break free from it. Don’t allow the actions of those in your life to dictate the direction of your life.
You can create a new legacy. You can move from a bad legacy to an impactful legacy.
Leave a legacy others would want to follow.
