Leadership Lessons from Troll’s King Gristle, Jr.

In a world ruled by corruption, fear and terrible food, one hero stands above them all in splendid glory: King Gristle, Jr. from Trolls – the Bergen King every person needs, but we simply don’t deserve.

No, says the chorus! Too simple! An idiot! A charlatan! Calm down and lend me your ears and eyes my friends, let me share with you the inner workings of greatness.

1. King Gristle, Jr. is a survivor.

At the tender age of 3, when Trollstice failed and had his Dream crushed by Fate, his Father sat the Prince down. His words of leadership?

Resign yourself to failure son, you don’t have what it takes to turn it around, and you never will.

Under this unyielding psychological abuse, he became afraid and petrified, and everyone left him to crumble, to lay down and die. Did Gristle, Jr. give in to the darkness? Did he kill himself after facing the great abyss of eternal pain? Did he run for the hills when they sacked his father, the King, leaving him as the sole flag bearer of his name? No, he stayed in the game against unsurmountable odds. Despite a torrent of never-ending despair, he grew strong, and waited for the opportunity to one day get his King on. That is pure ‘winner’.

2. King Gristle, Jr. is a moral rock.

When tempted by a devil dealing the deepest desires of his heart he resisted not once, not twice, not thrice, but four-ice times.

In an avalanche of fearful oppression and tyrannical traditions, he held firm against the force of time.

He thought of his people before himself at the initial temptation, he faced the temptations of the body, of power, of selfishness, bravely protected his lovely mate at the final confrontation, and never wavered in his belief that what was right and proper for his people was as important as his Self.

The only thing simple about Gristle, Jr. is his chutzpah and courage.

3. King Gristle, Jr dreams the impossible.

Some of you may think you can not lose 30 lbs in 8 hours, but I would say you simply don’t have the right workout music and headband. Get your minds right! After all, Alice thought of 6 impossible things before breakfast, but I suppose most of you called her mad, too.

Dreamers almost always miss their targets, as Gristle, Jr. did on this occasion, too. It is the lot of dreamers to fail far more often then we succeed. This is what Steve Jobs meant when he said, “Stay hungry, stay foolish.”

But our great King dreamed of a new world where he didn’t need substances like Trolls to be happy, where he could have a loving friend and companion, and where the people he was responsible for led better lives because of him. He dreamed it, failed, dreamed again, failed, dreamed again, and never stopped believing until he arrived at his destination of awesomeness.

This is why I gladly tell his tale to you out there and share his tale bravely with the children wherever I go. Some day, when those little kids look back on their youth and wonder with strange eyes where have all the heroes gone- the street-wise Hercules to fight the rising odds- they’ll remember the great King Gristle, Jr., and be inspired to be worthy of the great red cape.

Long live King Gristle, Jr.!