I’m not one to watch much TV but Entourage is one of my all-time favorite shows. I watch the entire series once every couple years. By far, my favorite character on the show is Ari Gold. The show is based on the life of Mark Walburg, so the Ari character is a real person somewhere.
In case you’ve never seen the show (watch it now) Ari is the agent who represents the star of the show. Ari is relentless as f*ck when it comes to getting shit done. The reason I love the show so much, is because of the lessons I learn each time from Ari.
Watching Ari Gold is like getting a crash course in how to dominate a crowded market by force. The shit he pulls in the show, are the type moves only a powerful salesman can pull off. Every time I watch the show, I want to pick up my phone and start calling my network to make power-plays. The show motivates the f*ck out of me.
I’d like to share my biggest business take-aways from the show.
Your Spouse Doesn’t Have To Believe In Your Dream: Most of the time, Ari’s wife is on his ass about something. Complaining he works too much. Complaining he doesn’t spend time with the kids. Yelling at him for investing their money. Being the salesman he is, he does what he wants any way and asks for forgiveness. He doesn’t care if she’s on board or not, he knows he can sell her into getting on board with him.
I’m the same damn way. It’s cost me plenty of relationships but I’ve been working for a dream no one can see. Ari is the same way. He set out to build the biggest agency in Hollywood. No one, not even his family members, are gonna come between him and the dream he is turning into a reality.
Put Business First Until You Can’t:Piggybacking on the above point, Ari is almost always selling and apologizing to his wife for work, until the gives him the ultimatum. He’ll straighten up for a few weeks, then he’s right back to putting in the work. He will push things until the very end, but he never adds the straw that breaks the camel’s back. He’s always one straw short of a sunken hump though.
When you are on your way to being the best at something, you put 100% of your focus into it. That often means you are not giving the focus and attention you need to those around you. This can seriously piss our families off but WE know it’s the sacrifice we have to make. Push it to the limit, but never go over. There’s no turning back once the line is crossed. Ari crossed the line once, lost his wife, and had to work his ass off to keep her from blowing Bobby Flay.
Do EXACTlY What You Say You Are Going To Do: Even when it was a promise of vengeance, Ari always did what he said he was going to. He has a politician’s way with words, but he never went back on them. If he told you he would get you something, he came through. If he needed to make some shit happen for Vinny, he always made it happen.
If you watch any episode, you’ll see Ari making some bold claims. He backs all of them up 100%. When he made outrageous promises to Vinny, he always found a way to pull them off. This is what fueled his rise to power. Doing exactly what you say you are going to do is a rare and highly respected trait. Even in Hollywood.
Be Relentless For What You Want: Nothing and I mean nothing came in-between what Ari wanted and him getting it. He wanted to be the top agent rep’ing the top talent and he worked his ass off every step of the way to get there. He didn’t let competition, big Hollywood CEOs, producers or even actors stop him from becoming “the man”
Take a lesson from Mr Gold. If you want something do whatever it takes until you get it. If you’re not willing to do that, you don’t really want it. Quit kidding yourself.
Treat Your Clients Like GOLD: Ari bent over backwards for Vinny Chase every episode. From buying front row Laker tickets, to sending him limos to pick him up. Ari treated every client he had, like gold. Even when they had no money, he pulled favors from everywhere in order to make sure his a-list clients were well taken care of.
The lesson I learned from Ari on this one is this: It takes a lot of work to land a badass client. Once you get them in your book, don’t stop treating them right. Many businesses get clients then neglect them. Don’t lose what you work your ass of for, treat the clients how they deserve to be treated times ten.
Leverage Your Network For All It’s Worth: One thing you see Ari doing every episode is utilizing his network. He makes calls to get roles for his clients, land jobs for his constituents, and get funding for start up producers. Ari was the master at pulling favors. He worked his ass off to earn the right to do so.
When you provide value to your network, even if they hate you, they will get you what you need. I think the characters in Entourage worked with Ari, because they didn’t want to go up against him or end up on his bad side.
Tell It Like It Is Whether They Like It Or Not: If you keep your mouth shut and refuse to speak up, you’ll never get what you want. Ari wasn’t afraid to tell it like it is. He pissed damn near everyone in Hollywood off, but they knew exactly what was on his mind. He didn’t have to sugarcoat anything. He knew. He knew he had put in the time and the work, so when he knew something, he knew it with conviction. He wasn’t afraid to tell it like it is because he knew he was right.
People may not want to hear the truth, but they respect people who tell it. In the days of brown nosing and sugarcoating for the PC police, people like Ari are respected because they don’t bullshit. Be like Ari. Like you or not, people respect you. That’s all you ever need.
If you’ve never watched Entourage, today is the day you put that shit to an end. I don’t endorse TV or even have cable, but it’s a show I invest my time in. There’s all sorts of lessons in ever episode. You can get the re-runs on amazon and netflix. The show is def worth a weekend binge watch.
