Song Sung Blue tells the true story of Lightning & Thunder. The duo was a Neil Diamond tribute band with a sad, yet hauntingly beautiful story.
Lightning is Mike Sardina (Hugh Jackman). His wife, Claire (Kate Hudson), is Thunder. Together, they formed a powerful tribute act.
Their lives took many twists and turns. Mike was a recovering alcoholic. Claire lost her leg when a car hit her in front of their home. Then, Mike passed away just before meeting Neil Diamond.
Song Sung Blue was a great film with a great message. It’s one that should stick with you long after you view the film.
More than the intentional message are the many unintentional, hidden leadership messages in Song Sung Blue. We’re going to explore those in today’s Reel Leadership article.
Quotes And Leadership Lessons From Song Sung Blue
1. Mike Sardina:
I am an entertainer.
Mike knew who he was. He wasn’t a songwriter. He wasn’t a sex symbol. Yet, he was something.
He was an entertainer.
And you know what? There’s nothing wrong with that. More importantly, Mike knew what he was. He didn’t shy away from the fact that he was an entertainer.
Do you know what you are? Do you know what you’re doing?
Discover what you are. Are you a leader? A follower? A mix of both?
Find what you are and lean into it.
2. Claire Sardina:
Nostalgia pays.
Mike was talking to Claire at a band tribute event. Claire was there performing as Patsy Cline. The two quickly kindled a romance. However, before that, they had a great conversation.
In the first conversation, Claire brought up something that seemed improbable. There was an Elvis Presley impersonator who rubbed Mike the wrong way. There was a lot of tension and both walked away frustrated.
Claire told Mike that the man had made $20,000 on an impersonation cruise.
That was a lot of money back then. It’s still a lot of money now. Mike was shocked.
But what was the reason for the big payday for the Elvis impersonator? It was the fact that nostalgia sells.
Remember this as you lead. Nostalgia sells.
Nostalgia sells to your customers. Nostalgia sells to your employees. Nostalgia sells to your superiors.
Find ways to bring a sense of nostalgia into your interactions with others. It’ll pay dividends.
3. You can change:
Claire and Mike have a date at the fair. Claire talks about her ex-husband.
What was he like? Claire’s ex made her feel small. Unworthy. Unloved.
Mike opens up about him and his ex. How did Mike make his ex feel? The same way Claire’s did… Mike made his ex-wife feel small.
But with Mike, there was a difference. Mike was working on changing. He was going to rehab meetings at his local Alcoholics Anonymous. He was taking steps to better himself.
As the movie progresses, we see that Mike has stayed true to what he said he would do. He had changed. He had become a better man and husband.
We often hear that people can’t or don’t change. I don’t believe this. I believe you shouldn’t believe this either.
Believing people can’t change keeps people stuck in a pattern of self-defeat. Every time they make a mistake, you hold them to the person they once were.
The same applies to you. You can change. Don’t let others tell you otherwise. You can determine that what you’re doing isn’t working and change it.
If you’re not doing what’s right, make a change today.
4. You can grow close to those you don’t like at first:
Claire brought her daughter, Rachel (Ella Anderson), and her son, Dana (Hudson Hensley), to a band practice at Mike’s house. Mike had his daughter, Angelina (Mikaela Mullaney Straus/King Princess), there as well to help make the time together easier.
When Rachel saw Angelina, she became upset with her mom. Rachel believed it was a play date. She wasn’t interested in that.
However, Rachel and Angelina found common ground. They grew closer that day and throughout their parents’ relationship. Even after Mike’s passing, the two stayed connected.
Is there someone at your office you despise? When you come in and see them, does your blood boil?
You can work through it. You can find common ground. You can warm the chill in the air.
Look for common ground between the two of you. Do you both like fountain pens? Have you both experienced a similar situation in life? Is there a sports team you both like?
Find the common ground and let it bring you together.
5. Taking unknown phone calls can lead to big opportunities:
Rachel answers a ringing phone at their house. She hands the phone to Mike and tells him the caller is Eddie. Mike believes the caller is an Eddie he knows. It is not.
The caller tells Mike he’s Eddie Vedder (John Beckwith). If you know music, the name Eddie Vedder should ring a bell. He is the singer for Pearl Jam.
Even the name of Pearl Jam didn’t ring a bell for Mike. However, when Rachel heard the band name, she began to freak out. She was a huge fan.
What was the reason for Eddie’s call? Eddie wanted Lightning & Thunder to open for Pearl Jam. And the duo did
Talk about a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity! All because Mike took a phone call.
It’s easy to ignore calls from people you don’t know. Your Samsung Galaxy caller ID shows “Caller Unknown” or only the number.
Your first instinct may be to ignore the call. To send the caller to voicemail. You don’t have the time to be bothered by someone you don’t know. It’s probably a telemarketer.
But what if it isn’t? What if it is an opportunity calling?
I say take the unknown calls. There could be an opportunity behind the call.
6. Let your team know they’re important:
Mike is a recovering alcoholic. He’s been sober for over 20 years. Every year, he performs “Song Sung Blue” to his AA group on his sober birthday.
However, as the popularity of Lightning & Thunder grew, he couldn’t attend his AA meetings like he once did. He would even have to miss his sober birthday and the tradition he had created.
Why did he perform for his AA group? Why did he want to record a message and the song for them when he couldn’t make it?
Because they were special to him. He let them know that in the recording.
I sure hope your people are important to you. You spend so much time with your team, there needs to be a connection between all of you.
Since the people you lead are important, you need to find ways to let them know. Here are a few ways you can let your team know they’re important:
- Write a kind thank-you note to them
- Reward them with a bonus day off
- Remember special days such as birthdays, work anniversaries, etc…
When you let people know they’re important, you let them know they’re special.
7. Dr. Dave Watson (Fisher Stevens):
I believe in you.
Dr. Watson was Mike’s dentist. He was also the band manager for Lightning & Thunder.
During one dental appointment, Dr. Watson asks Mike how he’s doing… How Claire is doing.
Mike said they’re really not.
Things had been strained after Claire’s accident. She lost her leg. She fell into a deep depression. And the pair drifted apart.
Dr. Watson encouraged Mike. He told him that he believed in him.
Wow! Imagine being told someone believes in you. How would that make you feel?
You would feel encouraged. Maybe empowered. You’d walk with a pep in your step or your head held higher.
Think of ways you can encourage others. When you encourage others, you build them up.
Encourage someone today.
8. Claire Sardina:
I think it was more in my head than in my leg.
Mike tells Claire he’s not doing the Lightning act without her. She was the one who made the songs work. She was the one who made him want to sing.
He doesn’t want to continue the act without her.
Claire then tells Mike that she’s been talking in a support group. She tells him she now sees the importance of the AA meetings he had been attending. Because she’s talking to others, she’s gaining clarity on the issues she’s facing.
While having part of her leg amputated was traumatic, there was a deeper issue. She’s been working through the mental side of things.
You’re going to encounter many issues while leading. You may think the struggles you’re having are the actual problems you’re facing.
They’re not.
The real battlefield is your mind.
Your mental state is important. You have to be willing to break through your mental hurdles before you can tackle the issues you’re facing in the office.
If you don’t, they’re going to keep coming back in new and different ways.
9. Look for opportunities when you face a roadblock:
Mike and Claire met with an event programmer. He had a great idea. He wanted to book a large concert venue with their Lightning & Thunder act. He believed they could sell out the venue.
Mike wasn’t so sure. Especially since the show would be on a Wednesday.
Who sells out a large venue on a Wednesday? The event programmer thought the duo could sell out for one specific reason: Neil Diamond was playing the same night and was sold out. People who missed out on that show could see a very similar show.
He saw their show as counter-programming to the Neil Diamond concert. They would get the overflow. And they did.
What looked like a roadblock was actually an opportunity.
In your organization, there will be roadblocks. Maybe a competitor releases a product similar to what you’ve been working on. Or maybe your network goes down.
Both things seem like horrible things to have happened. I’m not downplaying either situation. They’re both not ideal.
However, there are opportunities in both.
You get to see how customers react to the product before you release yours. You gain feedback and release an even better product.
Your network goes down, but that gives you the opportunity to examine its configuration. You can add new efficiencies that weren’t there before.
Look for the opportunity in the roadblock.
10. Claire Sardina:
There was more to Mike than being a singer.
After Mike sings at the big event, he and Claire are off to meet Neil Diamond. It was a magic moment. Or at least it was supposed to be.
Claire exits the vehicle. She’s told that Neil is on his way to the small restaurant. She lets Mike know.
Mike doesn’t respond. She looks in the backseat and Mike is dead.
At his funeral, Claire tells attendees that there was more to Mike than being a singer. Mike was:
- A father
- A Vietnam veteran
- A husband
- A friend
There’s more to you than your title. Don’t let anyone else tell you otherwise.
You’re a friend. A spouse. A sibling. A parent. A confidant.
Never ever forget you’re more than your title.
11. Pay attention to your health:
Mike had struggled with heart issues throughout the movie. Just before his big show, he had a heart issue and collapsed in his bathroom. He busts his head open when it hits the bathroom sink.
Still, he soldiered on. He glued the wound and went on stage, ignoring the fact that he probably just had a heart attack.
Mike ignored his health.
Leaders often ignore their health, too. They believe they can push through the mental and physical pain that comes with the stress of leadership.
Stop it. Please, just stop it.
Take care of your health. Go see a doctor. Talk to a therapist. Get the help you need.
If you don’t pay attention to your health, you’ll pass away before you should.
