What the Shark Tank Sharks have taught their Biggest Fan

I’m not much of the entrepreneurial type, but I love almost any form of competitive reality television. From Project Runway, to Making It, to Survivor, I can never get enough. When a colleague introduced me to Shark Tank, I was immediately hooked. Pun intended.

In most reality shows, I’d be rooting for my favorite contestant and gushing in the drama of competition and fast approaching deadlines. Shark Tank turns the competition on its head while the hosts fight for a bite of equity in entrepreneurs’ “heroes or zeroes.” While I haven’t been inspired to start my own company, I’ve learned some tricks to stay focused and true to myself.

Lori Greiner

The QVC queen, Lori Greiner is the tank’s sweetheart. Always smiling when negotiating with an entrepreneur or battling it out with the other sharks she reminds me to always keep a positive attitude when others want to bring me down. No one can tell her who she is. She has the patents and influence to earn the title queen. As they like to say, “know your numbers,” and Lori knows them all. Apart from the numbers, Lori is a shark who trusts her natural instincts as she “can tell instantly if a product is a hero or a zero.”

Barbara Corcoran

This real estate mogul knows how to build a business. Famous for creating a $1,000 loan into a $66 million real estate empire, she’s far from stupid — despite being called that by a teacher at a young age. For Barbara, it’s not all about the numbers. She regularly invests in a promising person rather than just a shiny product that drops into the Tank. When it comes to negotiations, she never takes 51% for granted. That 1% owns a lot of power, as she learned when her ex who held 51% of their company married her secretary and took over their business. Regardless, no one puts Barbara in a corner and the proof is in the paper. Barbara inspires me to own my work and take credit for it, and that the individual, not just the product holds the key to success.

Robert Herjavec

Known as the nice shark, Robert Herjavec built a million-dollar technology company out of his basement. In his book “You Don’t Have to be a Shark” he notes that “The first thing you’re selling is yourself. Forget about the product or service. If whoever you’re selling to doesn’t like you, they’re not going to listen to you… Be the salesperson you’d buy something from.” While he doesn’t seem naturally competitive, he gets in the game with the other sharks. Robert plays fair, but reminds entrepreneurs and sharks alike to “never mistake my kindness for weakness.”

Kevin O’Leary

Kevin, owner of O’Leary Funds and Softkey, comes off as a leach with his famous perpetuity deals, but it shows he’s knows exactly what’s best for him. Hitting entrepreneur’s with the hard questions, he swims through multiple aspects of an opportunity before offering his deal. Although I’m a natural people-pleaser, he reminds me to think critically and keep the end goal in mind. Doesn’t a shark want to make the kill? At the end of the day, Kevin knows what matters most. At least to himself.

Daymond John

My favorite thing about Daymond is that he knows when to stay in his lane. His fashion line FUBU is a classic rags to riches tale, and every entrepreneur wants him to invest. His distribution, manufacturing, and celebrity endorsements easily enable his products to fly off the shelves. But if that’s not what the entrepreneur needs, he will kindly step aside and allow them to team up with a better partner. He knows his strengths and embraces his weaknesses. This principle applies to the go-getter in me. It’s smart to get your fins wet in many areas, but if you need to get out of the way and let another shark in, get “out” and wait for the next one.

Mark Cuban

Oh, Mark Cuban. In my opinion, Mark, “the notoriously outspoken billionaire owner of the Dallas Mavericks” is the most polarizing personality of the group. With an intensely competitive edge, he sometimes won’t let the other sharks or entrepreneurs get a word in. Infamous for the “24 second shot clock” of negotiation, he doesn’t waste time when it comes to a killer deal. Other times, he sits back quietly while others make their offers. At the last minute he sweeps up the deal with an offer so good the entrepreneur just can’t say no. When sharks banter, Mark strategizes. Either way, he’s there to win, and if you don’t take the leap all bets are off. Mark’s lesson is in embodied in this quote: “Talent without effort is wasted talent. And while effort is the one thing you can control in your life, applying that effort intelligently is next on the list.”