08/10/2026
The Leader Doesn’t Always Sit in the Center of the Picture
Yesterday I learned that Ben Jones — Cooter Davenport from The Dukes of Hazzard — had passed away.
I’ve been a lifelong fan of the show and had the opportunity to meet Ben several times at Cooter’s Place in Luray, Virginia.
But as a leadership coach, I’ve found myself thinking about something different today.
Cooter wasn’t the star of The Dukes of Hazzard.
Bo and Luke drove the General Lee. Boss Hogg created the trouble. Rosco chased them. Daisy was Daisy.
And Cooter?
Cooter ran the garage.
He fixed what was broken. He answered when somebody called. He helped people get moving again.
He was dependable.
And somehow Hazzard County wouldn’t have felt like Hazzard County without him.
There is a leadership lesson in that.
We often associate leadership with the person at the front — the founder, CEO, visionary, or person whose name is on the building.
But some of the most important people in an organization become its anchors.
They create stability. Preserve culture. Solve problems. Connect people. Remember the story.
And when something breaks, everybody knows who to call.
One of Cooter’s favorite sayings over the CB was:
“I might be crazy, but I ain’t dumb.”
There may be more leadership wisdom in that than first appears.
I’ve jokingly referred to myself for years as a “High Tech Redneck,” borrowing the phrase from the George Jones song.
I love technology, systems, strategy, and new ideas.
But I also have a deep appreciation for practical wisdom, common sense, craftsmanship, loyalty, relationships, and knowing how to fix something when it breaks.
Maybe that is one reason Cooter Davenport always appealed to me.
Leadership doesn’t require us to become polished versions of somebody else.
It requires enough humility to know who we are, enough wisdom to keep learning, enough competence to be useful, and enough judgment to recognize the boundaries that matter.
Looking at this picture I took of the replica of Cooter’s office at the Hazzard County Garage, I’m reminded that important leadership doesn’t always happen behind an impressive desk.
Sometimes it happens in the garage.
It happens when somebody knows how things work, knows the people involved, has earned their trust, and is willing to roll up his sleeves when something needs fixing.
The Duke boys could drive the General Lee.
Cooter kept it running.
And after the show ended, Ben did something similar. He helped keep the Dukes of Hazzard community alive — bringing people together, preserving memories, and passing them along to another generation.
That is stewardship.
That is influence.
That is leadership.
There will always be another new tool, another idea, and another road to travel.
Learn. Adapt. Build. Lead.
Be willing to do some things differently. You might even look a little crazy now and then.
Just don’t become so sophisticated that you lose your common sense, your identity, or your bearings.
As Cooter would say:
Keep it between the ditches.
