Most of us will never come closer to a zombie apocalypse than the slow crawl through our Monday morning drive to work, but that doesn’t mean there aren’t a few things we can learn from our favorite undead drama. In fact, it turns out watching a little bit of TV – and studying what we see each week –could even be good for business.
Don’t believe me? Here are four things any entrepreneur can learn from The Walking Dead…
#1 You Have to Know Who You Can Trust
As any loyal viewer of The Walking Dead will know, it isn’t just the zombies you have to look out for; sometimes your fellow survivors are the real threat. That’s a good thing to remember in business, too. Some colleagues and vendors really do want to help you, while others are just looking for an easy way to get into your pockets. Learning to tell the difference and manage your relationships accordingly is important.
#2 It’s Hard to Survive without a Good Leader
On TV, Rick is a strong leader who only delegates tasks to those he knows can handle them. That kind of leadership is critical to the group as a whole, and maximizes everyone’s skills or talents. Remember that anyone you work with has things they are good at – and things they aren’t so good at. When you ignore that basic reality, you set yourself up for disaster.
#3 It’s All about Working with What’s at Hand
Each week, the gang on The Walking Dead has to find new ways to make do with what amounts to scraps. Because others have often picked through the best options, they may find themselves crafting weapons from twine or belt buckles and even braiding straws. Most entrepreneurs can relate to that. When you’re first starting out, you probably won’t have money for everything you want for your business, so making do with what you have (or can afford) at the moment is a valuable skill.
#4 You Never Get Better If You Don’t Learn New Things
None of the characters on the show started out as a zombie-fighter. Carol, for example, was a battered housewife who has become one of the most dangerous people in the group. You might not ever undergo that kind of change, but successful entrepreneurs do grow and evolve all the time. Just because you don’t have a skill now doesn’t mean you can’t develop it later.
It turns out The Walking Dead isn’t just entertaining us, but also is giving out lots of great advice on business ownership. Hopefully you can use these four tips to stop the competition from pulling you back into the crowd of the undead?
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