Since the dawn of October 1993, mankind has struggled with this question: is The Nightmare Before Christmas a Halloween movie or a Christmas movie? I don’t know why, though; the answer is obviously both. But here’s something to ponder on your next viewing, to occur any time between now and the end of the year: have you ever noticed that Jack Skellington is a really good manager?
Seriously! He might be the Pumpkin King, but Jack is no dictator – he demonstrates repeatedly that however he may have come by his title, he deserves it. In this spooky season, let’s dive into his leadership style, shall we?
WHAT MAKES A GREAT MANAGER, ANYWAY?
Naturally everyone is going to have a different answer to this question. Google it and you’ll never see the end of articles in Forbes, The Harvard Business Review, Asana, Indeed, etc. Luckily the handy-dandy artificial intelligence of that same search engine has synthesized the gist for us, so we can judge by a representative array of metrics. Some of these include:
• Leadership
• Knowledge
• Setting clear goals and expectations
• Delegation & empowerment
• Feedback & coaching
• Empathy
• Accountability
That’s a lot to live up to, but in a single viewing of The Nightmare Before Christmas, you’ll quickly see Jack possesses all these traits.
WHAT MAKES JACK SKELLINGTON A GREAT MANAGER?
Leadership. This one’s easy. The whole town looks up to Jack. They adore him. The mayor won’t make a move without his approval. They’re frantic when he disappears. And it’s clear there’s nothing Machiavellian about his rule. They interact with him respectfully, but freely.
That’s probably because of his leadership style, as shown by…
Knowledge. Jack comes back to Halloween Town after his Christmas Town adventure raring to go. Yet he doesn’t call the town meeting right away. He makes sure he researches his new obsession carefully. He fully understands (well, thinks he fully understands) Christmas and what he wants from it before presenting his idea to his team.
Which leads us to…
Setting clear goals & expectations. Jack doesn’t simply burst into the town hall and declare that they’re a Christmas-focused operation now; go! He takes time to explain the pillars of the holiday in a way that he feels will make the most sense to his team and spark their enthusiasm.
That done, he takes care to assign tasks individually based on each team member’s strengths, after which he moves on to…
Delegation and empowerment. Jack Skellington is not a micromanager. Having doled out the assignments, he permits each team member to pursue their task as they see fit. Much like Walt Disney, he is a curator of ideas.
Not that they don’t sometimes require course correction, which is when he turns to…
Feedback & coaching. I could describe Jack’s feedback and coaching style, or we could save ourselves some time and watch the action during the song “Making Christmas.”
Four words: try again; don’t give up!
This kind encouragement is also an example of…
Empathy. Jack may sometimes let his elan blind him, but not to the point that he ceases to care about those around him. After all, as outlined in the opening number “This is Halloween,” the people of Halloween Town aren’t mean! When Lock, Shock, and Barrel bring back the Easter Bunny instead of Sandy Claws, he apologizes profusely. And even though he brushes off Sally’s fears, he doesn’t lose his temper or blame her for later problems.
Speaking of which…
Accountability. In the end, Jack’s Christmas takeover is a disaster. Does he point the finger and blame the citizens of Halloween? No, he does not! He takes responsibility for a project that was executed wholly and solely under his command. Not a breath does he speak against his underlings. He focuses his attention on undoing the damage, and celebrates with his compatriots in a happy ending.
After all, Jack Skellington is the ruler of his realm, but…
JACK SKELLINGTON IS ONLY (IN)HUMAN
No, he’s not perfect. He’s not always great at listening, and he gets tunnel vision in pursuit of his goals. Sometimes that vision lies beyond his scope.
But by the end of his hero’s journey, he has improved upon these character flaws. Does being a great manager not require humility and growth?
IN CONCLUSION
Still doubt me? In assembling this post, I initially thought I’d need to reference the script for The Nightmare Before Christmas to find my examples of Jack Skellington’s management style. As it turned out, it wasn’t necessary; as I turned my attention to each adjective, an anecdote immediately popped to mind. I mean, I still watched the movie, but it was for pleasure as much as business.
And if you’re a manager in your business, I highly recommend adopting some of Jack’s characteristics as you navigate the challenges of leadership. WWJD, except this time the J stands for Jack! And remember…
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