Overcoming Envy

Last updated on: October 23, 2025 at 12:22 pm by Richard E. Simmons III

Overcoming Envy 2025-10-23T12:22:03-06:00 Richard E. Simmons III

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The wise King Solomon said, “And I saw that all work and all achievement spring from one person’s envy of another.” (Ecclesiastes 4:4) He says envy is what fuels so many people’s lives. The Bible presents envy as a destructive and sinful emotion. It is spiritually dangerous, personally destructive, and a root of many sins.

I recently read a true story of a man who easily could have been filled with envy, but showed tremendous courage to overcome it. The story comes from The Art of Achievement by Tom Morris.

Ken Schanzer was a vice president of NBC Sports, and was considered to be next in line for president, a job he eagerly anticipated. On the day the new president was to be named, the network announced that it would be Dick Ebersol, a very accomplished individual at NBC who had not previously been a part of the sports division. As the newly appointed leader made the rounds to meet all the sports executives who now would be reporting to him, he was greeted by a sea of smiles, good wishes, and hearty congratulations all around. But when he went into Schanzer’s office, he experienced something very different.

“I’m the most disappointed I’ve ever been in my life,” Schanzer stated point-blank. No one else had expressed any hint of a negative sentiment to Ebersol, despite his being an outsider suddenly brought in to run the sports enterprise over all the seasoned insiders who had expected one of their own to ascend to the job. Schanzer spoke to him with complete candor. “But I understand how this can be a good thing for NBC Sports,” he continued, and then went on to list the strengths Ebersol could bring to the position. He concluded by saying, “I’ll do everything I can to help you do the job well.”

Few people expected an individual in Schanzer’s position to stay on in the division after something like this. But he did. And that honest conversation launched a relationship between the two men that came to be a centerpiece in both their personal and professional lives. Schanzer, who eventually became president of NBC sports, recently said that what had seemed at the time to be the worst day of his life had instead become one of the best days ever. Every good thing in his career after that day came out of the relationship that grew from those first seeds of honesty. Ebersol sensed he could trust Schanzer. And Schanzer soon felt the same about Ebersol.

“Guys at the top are brutally honest with each other,” Schanzer said. The best leaders don’t have time for elaborate games with truth and falsehood. They need truth to steer by. Trust is necessary. Character counts. A strong character is indeed the foundation for great relationships.”

I might add that Ken Schanzer recognized his own envy, but instead of hiding it, he came clean. His character enabled him to humble himself and to press on as the number two person at NBC Sports. He was rewarded by eventually becoming the president, and both men watched NBC Sports flourish.

Richard E Simmons III is the founder and Executive Director of The Center for Executive Leadership and a best-selling author.

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