Editor’s note: This article was first published in October 2013, just after the Breaking Bad series finale. It contains plot details (spoilers) from the show.
The popular series Breaking Bad holds 7 invaluable lessons for the business world, provided we imagine that amphetamines are a legitimate product and that “Heisenberg” is an entrepreneur who wants to make money with a legal business.
The first thing this chemistry teacher does when he is diagnosed with terminal cancer and decides to raise a large sum of money for his family is turn to what he is good at, to what he is competent in. He also carries out a small market study in which he assesses the viability of the business. Once he is clear that he wants to start, we have the 7 business lessons. (Read: How to know what to do for a living)
1. Diversity when choosing a partner
This is undoubtedly one of the most important lessons of Breaking Bad early on: we have probably the best chemist making the best product (methamphetamine), but he doesn’t know how to sell it or who to sell it to. Imagine for a moment that his partner in this business had been someone just like him: another chemistry professional, another teacher…
A person may have a talent and be unable to develop it or make money from it for lack of another person. In this case, Heisenberg is a chemistry genius, so he looks for someone to handle distribution who has contacts in the sector. In short, someone who knows the street. Some entrepreneurs forget this simple lesson when choosing their employees or partners.
2. Product quality
When you have the best product, you shouldn’t worry so much about lowering the price. Heisenberg is fully confident that customers will buy from him once they try his product. What’s more, he is confident he will be able to raise the price and his buyers will keep buying from him.
3. Standing out: your product’s image
In the series, the blue colour of the methamphetamine symbolises Heisenberg’s trademark, the image of his product. There are many products on the market, but you’ll recognise mine just by looking at it, in the same way that Steve Jobs made sure you would recognise an iPhone just by seeing it. If, on top of that, customers get what you promised them when they try it, success in business is assured.
4. The problems of choosing a partner
When we gave our 10 tips for choosing a business partner, we stressed the issue of addictions.
If you let a partner with any kind of addiction (gambling, alcoholism, drugs…) into your company, your whole business is at risk. In Breaking Bad you can see how Heisenberg’s partner at times puts everything in danger.
5. Having a defined plan, as precise as possible
Although business is a different matter from personal financial education, I was surprised to see that Heisenberg had an exact figure for what he wanted to earn. In fact, everyone should have a completely exact figure in mind. In Heisenberg’s case, the figure was around $700,000; he knew how long he wanted to take to get it and how he was going to get it. That is a financial plan in every sense.
6. Estimate income low and expenses high
The series portrays the day-to-day reality of business perfectly: even with a carefully drawn-up financial plan, more unexpected setbacks tend to come up than we think. On several occasions, Heisenberg finds that everything he has earned vanishes in an instant and he has to start over. A business won’t always be so profitable and easy from the beginning, although it doesn’t have to be so complicated either.
7. Mindset in the face of failure
Persistence, persistence and persistence… Even though his problems keep piling up and he goes from failure to failure, Heisenberg never loses sight of his goal: that sum of money he has to earn no matter what, because his family’s future depends on it if he ends up leaving them behind.
As we can see, a simple TV series, if we know how to look beyond the entertainment, can also give us some very useful advice for business and for life in general.
Further reading
- Jack Welch: 10 wise business and leadership lessons from the best executive of the 20th century
- Richard Branson: 6 business lessons from sporting success
- 50 inspiring quotes from entrepreneurs for entrepreneurs
Featured image: Kenneth C. Zirkel, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
