Hollywood often gets a bad rap for making TV programs and movies that are devoid of reality. Whether it’s CSI using technology that hasn’t been invented yet or Law & Order solving crimes in 60 minutes that in reality would take months or years to solve, writers don’t always get it right.
It’s a different story when it comes to entrepreneurship, however. In recent years, there have been a number of TV characters created who do a pretty good job of portraying entrepreneurs and the challenges they face running their businesses. Even seasoned entrepreneurs could learn a thing or two from these characters:
Lessons From TV’s Top Entrepreneurs:
Walter White, Breaking Bad
Walter White will likely be remembered as TV’s most infamous entrepreneur. White used his extreme intelligence and the pressure created from a terminal cancer diagnosis to build an empire in the nefarious world of illegal narcotics. The ends do not justify the means, however, and White paid the ultimate price for his transgressions. Had he applied his considerable talents toward a more noble (or at least not illegal) cause, he likely would have achieved even greater success.
What entrepreneurial traits did he possess?
- Thinking big. In one of the series’ classic lines, White makes it clear that he is in the “empire-building business.” More entrepreneurs need to think big in order to find success. If you set your sights on a small goal, failing to achieve it means you may wind up with nothing.
- Obsessive focus on execution. White differentiated himself by developing a superior-quality product based on his knowledge and meticulous attention to detail.
- Staying calm under extreme pressure. This is putting it mildly! We hopefully will never experience the type of pressure that White endured, but business owners have to put out fires on a pretty regular basis, and staying calm is key to making good decisions under pressure.
Stringer Bell, The Wire
The Wire ended its five-season run on HBO in 2009, but it’s still considered by many critics to be one of the best TV dramas ever produced. The Wire took a deep dive into policing and the illegal drug trade, employment, government, education and media as told through the story of modern-day Baltimore. Among the key characters was Stringer Bell, an aspiring entrepreneur with the talent and aspiration to be a successful entrepreneur but who instead chose the easy money to be made on the street. His demise is yet another example of wasted talent.
