By Karen (Just Another Manager Trying to Get Through Monday)
Last Thursday, I hit a wall. Not a literal one—but the kind of mental and emotional wall that office workers know all too well.
The Q3 strategy deck was half-done. My team was dragging. I was stuck in back-to-back calls where everyone talked but said nothing. I stared at my screen for an hour, trying to spark something—anything.
And then, as I often do when motivation slips out the back door, I opened Netflix. Just for a few minutes. Just to reset.
That’s when I stumbled on a new Korean drama: Mercy For None. I expected a few fight scenes, maybe some brooding gangsters. Instead, I got a masterclass in business management, hidden under layers of blood, betrayal, and baseball bats.
Let me explain.
🔥 When Grit Replaces Strategy
The story follows Nam Gi-jun, a former gang enforcer who leaves the underworld after slashing his own Achilles tendon to escape. Fast-forward eleven years, his younger brother—now a rising star in a rival gang—is murdered. Gi-jun returns, not to rebuild an empire, but to unravel the truth.
What struck me wasn’t just the action (though, wow). It was how every move mirrored challenges I face at work: crisis leadership, team dysfunction, organizational decay, and the cost of bad decisions.
I couldn’t help but take notes—yes, actual notes—because somehow, between the headlocks and vendettas, this series delivered some of the sharpest business lessons I’ve encountered all year.
🧠 Power Without Trust Is Just Fear in a Suit
In Gi-seok’s gang, everyone calls each other “brother,” but no one means it. The moment he shows vulnerability, he’s expendable.
At work, I’ve seen leaders who lead with authority but not with trust. They get results—temporarily. But when things go sideways? No one rallies behind fear.
Real leadership isn’t about volume or title. It’s about who your team will still follow when the building’s on fire.
🧱 Leaving Without a Legacy Creates Chaos
Gi-jun walked away from crime to protect his brother. Noble, yes. But he left a leadership vacuum, and the void got filled by chaos.
In business, I’ve seen similar vacuums after abrupt exits—when key managers leave without a successor, or a founder steps down with no vision passed on.
Succession planning isn’t a checkbox. It’s legacy management.
⚖️ Revenge Is Not a Business Strategy
Gi-jun’s mission is driven by vengeance. And while that makes for compelling TV, it leaves a wake of destruction.
I’ve been tempted, too—retaliating when competitors poach talent, or when a colleague throws me under the bus. But leading through revenge is reactive, not strategic.
In the long game, revenge is noise. Vision is signal.
🔍 In Crisis, Clarity Beats Complexity
When Gi-jun returns, he doesn’t have a title, a gang, or a plan. But what he does have is clarity: find out who killed his brother, and why.
When I’m managing a team through crisis—whether it’s a budget cut or a last-minute pivot—what people need isn’t more meetings. They need clarity: What’s the priority? What’s non-negotiable?
One of the most powerful things a leader can say is: “This is what we’re doing, and this is why.”
💡 The Final Lesson: Find Leadership Lessons Anywhere
I didn’t expect to find inspiration in a violent Korean noir drama. But I did. Because Mercy For None reminded me that leadership is everywhere—it’s in how people handle betrayal, make decisions under pressure, and rally when all seems lost.
That weekend, I finished the series. On Monday, I finished the strategy deck. And when I walked into our team meeting, I didn’t try to “motivate” anyone.
I just brought clarity, conviction, and trust.
Turns out, that’s all they needed.
What unexpected places have you found leadership lessons? Drop a comment below—I’d love to hear your stories.
On Becoming An I(M)perfectionist 