Becoming the Bear

You may have heard of the critically acclaimed TV show, The Bear, which has won numerous Emmys, Golden Globes, SAG Awards, and more! If you haven’t watched the show yet, from the outside looking in, you may believe it is just a show about cooking and how stressful it can be, based on funny clips you may have seen out of context. However, the show has incredible lessons in how we can lead effectively as future health professionals through displaying both mishaps and successes. Be warned, minor and major spoilers are ahead for The Bear seasons 1, 2, and 3; don’t worry, I will let you know how big the spoiler is so you can skip to another section!

First, for those of you who have not seen The Bear before, this show follows world-class chef Carmen, or Carmy, Berzatto as he comes back to his now deceased brother’s restaurant, The Beef. From there, the show follows him learning to collaborate with the workers at The Beef, keeping the restaurant alive, and navigating his grief. Now, let’s dive into the world of leadership in The Bear!

Mishaps:

(Spoilers for Season 1, Episode 7) During this episode, Sydney, a chef at the restaurant, accidentally forgets to turn off the pre-order option for online orders, something new they are trying for the first time. Just as they turn the machine on for online orders, what seems like hundreds of tickets start printing due to the numerous pre-orders, orders that are nowhere near ready to serve, which will all be due to hungry customers in a short span of time. However, instead of leading this situation with calmness and poise, Carmy immediately gets frustrated with Sydney and begins yelling, creating an intense and hostile environment within the kitchen. His verbal abuse reaches a boiling point where he additionally lashes out at Marcus, another chef in the kitchen, throwing his dessert he had been working on to the floor. This leads to both Sydney and Marcus leaving the restaurant and quitting for the time being. As leaders, when we are faced with similarly stressful, overwhelming situations, rather than reacting with fiery anger, we must take a second to cool ourselves down and create a calm, coherent plan for our team; you must remember as a leader that people are looking to you, and your reaction to a situation, whether positive or negative, can consequently set the tone for how the team responds.

(Spoilers for what Season 2 is generally about, minor spoilers for Carmy and Sydney in Season 2) Season 2 focuses on the team (who worked at The Beef) creating a new restaurant of their own, named The Bear. In order to accomplish this, Carmy and Sydney planned to try dishes at other restaurants to get an idea of what they would like to serve at their own restaurant. Instead, Carmy flakes on Sydney, leaving her to go try dishes by herself, even though they are supposed to be collaborative partners. When we are leading, it’s important to remain accountable and responsible for the commitments we make to others; otherwise, it diminishes the trust team members have in each other. Additionally, having clear communication is pivotal in order for your team to understand why you may not be able to follow through on your promises, as opposed to simply flaking and leaving it up to guesswork.

Successes:

(Major spoilers for Richie in Season 2) Richie is a complex character in the kitchen who, prior to Episode 7 of Season 2, is an often rude, immature, unprofessional, abrasive individual. However, as you watch the show, you realize that behind this rough exterior is a soft heart that is grieving, scared of the new changes happening to the restaurant, and unsure of his purpose. It is during Episode 7 that he undergoes a transformative experience at a different 3-star restaurant where he learns to respect himself and finds purpose as well as passion in hospitality; he realizes it is not too late for him to do anything in his life and learns to enjoy each moment, embodying the dual meaning of the phrase he sees in the kitchen: “every second counts." Following this experience, he returns home and makes amends with those he has hurt in the past, soon becoming an incredible, motivational leader to his fellow wait staff. As we move throughout life, part of effective leadership requires us to be able to continuously grow and not become perfect, but better versions of the leaders we were yesterday. Remaining stagnant can lead us to bogging our teams down, but when we remember to embrace each second as it comes and to constantly learn from our experiences, that is when we allow ourselves to develop into truly groundbreaking leaders.

(Major spoilers for the ending of Season 3) At the end of Season 3, Carmy realizes he can’t keep leading the team the way he has, shutting others out and creating a tense environment, otherwise, he will take the restaurant down with him. He understands that he has become burnt out and must take time away from the restaurant to focus on himself and heal after utilizing cooking to avoid dealing with his personal trauma and grief. As a result, he leaves the restaurant to Sydney, whom he deems “The Bear,” the true heart, soul, and leader of the restaurant. When we lead others, there may be times when our struggles are intense, and knowing when to step away for the sake of our mental health as well as for the success of the team, is crucial. Leaders must learn how to take a break and delegate tasks to others as they take time to overcome their own struggles, otherwise, the whole team may collapse due to poor leadership.

While this show may have initially seemed like just a show about cooking, hopefully you can see how all the media that surrounds us has an abundance of lessons to share, whether about leadership or how to savour each second. As you progress in your journey to becoming a changemaking leader, consider the numerous lessons from this show and how you, too, might become The Bear.

Hayden Turner

Historian

2026