12 Things I Learned From Watching ‘Jeopardy!’

Like millions of others around the nation and the world, I have spent the last 36 years of my life watching Alex Trebek host the ‘Jeopardy!’ game show. Although I did not know him personally, watching Alex each evening at 7:30 PM (EST), made me feel like he was a part of our family.

On March 6, 2019, when he announced that he had pancreatic cancer, our family, as well as most of his fans around the globe, began praying for him like we would do for any family member who we knew was battling cancer.

Although we all hoped that it would not end this way, this past Sunday, Alex lost his battle with cancer. Our hearts are broken, and rightfully so, because we loved him. We loved his kindness and graciousness. We loved his humor and wit. We loved his passion and purpose.

As I mourn his loss, and reflect on his amazing legacy, I thought that a good way to honor his memory would be to share 12 things that I have learned from Alex, the game itself, and from the contestants.

1. Sit down and take a break.
Every evening, almost without exception, my husband, daughter and I sit in our den and watch ‘Jeopardy!’ as a family. It’s a time for us to reconnect after a long day of activities, and bond over something we all enjoy and love.

We live in a world that’s moving at frenzied pace. We all have places to go, things to do, and people to see, and because of that, you might think that taking a break is a frivolous thing to do, but it’s not.

Take time to rest, relax, and be with family. You won’t regret it.

2. Be willing to take a risk.
I’m always thrilled when I watch an episode of ‘Jeopardy!’ and one of the contestants says, “Alex, I’ve been waiting all my life to say this--make it a true daily double.”

Like the contestant on the show, sometimes you have to be willing to take a risk in life. Making a plan and taking some calculated risks can make the difference between you being a spectator in the bleachers versus you being in the game scoring the winning goal.

As they say, ‘Go big, or go home.’

3. Continue to study and learn.
Not only did the contestants have to study to prepare for the show, but watching ‘Jeopardy!’ challenged us, as viewers, to learn, as well.

For me, each question was an opportunity to gain a little more knowledge about a particular subject, but for some people it did much more.

Elly Shariat, a Iranian native, spoke only Farsi when she moved to the US, but when her father introduced her to ‘Jeopardy!’, her world opened up. When the words would appear on the screen, she learned how to pronounce them, and her dad would pay her 25 cents when she got the right answer.

‘Jeopardy!’ should encourage us all to be life-long learners.

4. Have a sense of humor.
‘The Today Show’ recently showed a short clip of Alex Trebek coming onto the set of ‘Jeopardy!’ without pants in order to ease some the tension for the contestants.

During the clip, Mike Richards, the executive producer of the show shared about humility and sense of humor that Trebek brought to the show. Although he was an award winning, world-renowned personality of a wildly popular show, he was able to embrace the lighter side of things.

Life is short, so don’t take yourself too seriously.

5. Be kind and gracious.
Over the past several days since his death, the one thing that I keep hearing about Alex Trebek was that he was the epitome of grace and kindness.

As a famous television personality, we might think that he was proud and pompous, however, famed contestant Ken Jennings shared that he was not that sort of person, at all. “He’s that kind of old-school gentleman. But I think the thing that might surprise home viewers is that he’s not starchy or smug in any way.”

In the end, the people who were kind and compassionate and made us feel special will be the ones we hold near and dear to our hearts.

6. Have an impeccable work ethic.
If Alex Trebek was anything, he was a consummate professional. He made the job look easy, but I recently read that he spent many hours reading through all of the questions, and practicing how to pronounce difficult names for every show.

Do your job so well, that you’ll be a hard act to follow.

7. Have a strategy.
Unless you’re James Holzhauer, the Jeopardy champion who could answer almost any question and whose total earnings surpassed $2 million, you will need to have a plan for playing the game.

Most of the contestants said that they focused on the categories that they knew best because they knew that wild guessing could put them in the negative and out of the game.

Just like the contestants, you have to make a plan for your personal and work life. Winning and being successful doesn’t generally just happen. You have to make a road map to help you get there.

8. Have a servant’s heart.
Alex Trebek had a servant’s heart and deeply cared about the people around him, including his work family.

Remember, it’s not all about you. Giving back and pouring yourself into the lives of others paradoxically ends up giving you a very high quality of life. By giving you receive.

9. Follow the rules.
One of the main rules in the game of Jeopardy is to give your answer in the form of a question. If a contestant fails to do this, their answers are invalid.

Some of us wonder why we can’t get ahead in life, and one of the reasons may be that we won’t reign in our impulses enough to follow rules. Although some of us are very talented, and may have good ideas, unless you’re willing to follow the rules, you can’t get to the next level.

Remember, most rules are there to help us, and not to hinder us.

10. Love your work.
When you love something and feel passionate about it, it’s evident to all those around you. It was clear that Alex Trebek loved his work, and it showed everytime he did a show.

Find something you love to do and do it with all your heart. It doesn’t necessarily even need to be a paid job, but something you’re passionate about, and would do even if you didn’t get paid.

11. Dig a little deeper.
Those of us who watched Jeopardy consistently, remember seeing a contestant who rang in to answer a question, struggled to recall the information, but in the final second or two, came up with the answer.

Sometimes the answers that we need are just a prayer away, and we need to diligently seek them out.

12. Finish strong.
Although he was diagnosed with stage 4 pancreatic cancer, Trebek kept going. Two weeks before his death, he made sure to go into the studio and tape enough shows that would get the program to the end of the calendar year.

So many times we sit around lamenting about how bad our life is; we sulk and complain, and feel sorry for ourselves when we are faced with difficulties. But having the right attitude and faith in your higher power enables you to make the best out of a bad situation. Alex Trebek showed us how this could be done.