Over the past few weeks I have been watching an addicting TV series called the Sopranos (currently on season 2). You’ve probably heard about it or seen it, but in case you haven’t, it is a show about the mafia. Even though many of these mafia stories may seem a bit old or repetitive, there is a lot you can learn from them. Here is what I learned from the mafia in the past few weeks:
- Don’t let anything stand in your way – if you want to successful then you have to do whatever it takes to obtain your goal. Mafia members usually result to violence and break the law to obtain their goals but you should be able to obtain yours without turning to criminal activities.
- Show some respect – in every industry there are always a few individuals that are looked up to. There usually is a reason for this and instead of being jealous or talking trash, you need to start showing some respect. Without those industry leaders your industry probably would not be where it is today.
- Patience is a virtue – you may want to be the big boss, but you need to work your way up to it. You can’t have everything you want right away and there is not much you can do about it (unless you want to whack everyone ahead of you).
- The smartest route isn’t always the easiest one – in most cases there will be multiple paths to obtaining your goals. Instead of going with the easy route, you need to go with the smart route.
- Think things over – if you are angry or desperate you probably start acting based off your instincts in hopes of satisfying your feelings. Instead of acting on things right away, start thinking things over because then you will be able to act based on logic instead of on feelings.
- Friends and family first – money and fame are great things to have but at the end of the day you are nothing without your friends or family. Do not let things get to your head in life and make sure your respect and embrace your friends and family.
- Don’t show off – there is nothing wrong with buying nice things every once in a while but don’t buy something just to show off. Although attention is good, if you are someone worth knowing sooner or later people will get to know you. People who just show off draw too much attention and in many cases are hated by others due to jealousy.
- Gain a backbone – if you don’t stand up for yourself people will just walk all over you. If you let people walk all over you it will not stop and it will not get you where you want to be in life.
- If you want it, then earn it – don’t expect things to be handed to you in life. Your family’s name or money can only get you so far in life. These days the up and coming millionaires aren’t having it all handed to them, but instead are working hard for it.
- Money doesn’t always buy happiness – you need to do what you like in life or else you may not be happy. Granted, money does make life easier, but it does not mean you are going to be happy forever because of money.
- Follow the unwritten rules in life – some of the most important rules in life and the ones that are not written. If you want to succeed in many cases you have to follow these rules or else you will be disowned from your community.
Look over my shoulder while I share: 
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Surround yourself with positive people that will go to battle with you. You win as a team.
Nice tip! It is always nice to have friends who have your back.
You should also surround yourself with successful people.. weak mindset spreads like a desease, avoid those who’ll only drag you down with their negativity and weakness.
Even having one negative person around you can be like a wildfire… it can spread in an instant.
Nice! Lots of marketers preach on forming a mastermind group within your industry or across several industries so that you can share business ideas and brainstorm ideas.
I’ve heard from somewhere your income would be close to the average income of your 5 closest friends.
Yes, that’s kind of true… who you hang out with is who you become… surround yourself with people who are a lot more successful than you are and you’ll eventually reach that level.
good post. i always thought to be good at business you needed a gangster mindset, not saying kill the prick that stands in your way, but make it so that he never wants to get in your way.
i don’t think you need to surround yourself with positive peeps, but peeps that got your back are a definite must. every successful gangster has a solid crew.
PEACE!
A crew makes a big difference because not only do they have your back, but you can rely on them for advice.
Having a crew means that you never walk alone. The brothers look out for each other, and when one gets into trouble, the support system kicks in. This kind of thinking and operating is also much evident amongst various ethnic groups that are very successful in life and business because of this.
Have a powerful entourage ! Just learn to create relationships and build connections.
You can’t let rejection get you down. Stand up for what you believe in and always know that the next day will be better.
In life it seems a lot people are afraid of rejection. People just need to suck it up and be prepared for it.
I just ‘discovered’ this in your list of favourites. Fantastic list, Neil. Perhaps this explains why polls show “The Godfather” is the favourite movie of many entrepreneurs.
Exactly, that’s probably a dead give away
Interesting things to learn from the show. i really need to get the DVDs and sit down and watch this since I have only caught bits and pieces. All of these are very good lessons. Might also want to add “don’t turn your back on trouble!”
Or you could go to Blockbuster and rent all of the seasons.
Wow, this really got my attention as I just watched the final episode three nights ago after watching the whole series in order (for the first time ever – I’ve never had cable) over the past several months. I really think you did a great job of taking taking something with a catchy angle (Sopranos) and then delivering useful information along with it. Great Post! Enjoy the series Neil!
I hope the final episode was great. I so want to get to the last season, but I have a few weeks to go.
i’ve been watching past seasons too – hbo on demand – and i’m on the one where he was told pussy had a wire. so tip 12 is to stay away from people who will rat out your plans to the competition. snitches catch stitches and get thrown in ditches.
On the other hand snitches can be useful if you know that they are a “snitch”. Your may be able to use them to your advantage.
i see where you could probably give them fake information to mislead your competition and have them do something to your advantage that you knew they would do once they had such information.
Exactly, and if they go to your competition with it… you could screw them over. (not saying to do it, but you could)
Great angle! There is so much depth to that show that I still think about certain episodes as I’m daydreaming.
Ya thats really true I think. They are great.
Tony Soprano? Seriously? You forgot the part about how when someone sitting around the table in the boardroom betrays you should whack them after hours in a dark alley. Honestly. Hello Dumb Little Man! Tony Soprano was a fictional character! Duh. Take his advice and end up in jail.
I hope you do not feel I recommend taking his advice when it comes to criminal activities. I was just trying to make a point that there are similarities with the mafia and good business practices.
^^^Wow, missed the ENTIRE POINT of this article. Well done, that must have taken considerable effort
Good points for any type of business
Great list and show. Might I add another, Have a cash business that generates money 24/7 (Bada Bing)
It would be interesting to see what Vinny Chase (Entourage) tips for success would be.
I believe the most important element is ‘luck’ !
Good points up here, but bad example…Mafia?? and good business practices?
I also think luck is very important, but I still think you can learn a lot from the mafia. Granted they have unethical business practices and break the law, but there are certain things that they know well such as respecting superiors.
If you are going to make a point, go big, break kneecaps. No point in teaching lessons that no-one else is going to see.
Great list Neil. I’m glad you’re not condoning resorting to violence though.
Six is really important. I spent a long time working all my waking hours and barely seeing my family. Then one day, I had to ask myself, if I died tomorrow, would I be happy with the way I’d spent my time over the last few years and the answer was a definite NO.
As the saying goes, “violence doesn’t solve anything’.
That is a weak statement. The real statement is “War cannot be avoided; it can only be postponed to the other’s advantage” or “Before all else, be armed.” This is the sopranos, not Run’s House.
Thanks for the input. I’ll probably end up using “War cannot be avoided; it can only be postponed to the other’s advantage†in a future blog post.
Just make sure you know that it came from Niccolo Machiavelli, not me. I should have quoted above, but didn’t.
I think I might be one of the last few people to have seen a complete episode of this show, but I definitely should. Great write up and list here Neil, it’s a good “Survival of the Fittest” type analogy too.
I like what you gained from the show. Some people might have come away with other things, like don’t eat box, wash money through strip clubs and garbage services, steal, etc… but on the real loyalty and a good crew is key.
A lot of people take it for granted, but a loyal crew can make a big difference in your life.
Just having people you can depend on can make or break you. Unfortunately I have been living by the “if you want it done right, do it yourself” motto too long. I need a loyal crew to expand and grow.
I used to live by the same motto, but then I realized that my revenue potential was capped due to the amount hours in each day.
I know have a loyal crew and it has helped drastically with growth, but it took years before I could find all of the right people.
teamwork success comes when you find people smarter than you in areas outside your expertise to do all the things that you can’t do because they are either too time consuming or too technically involved for you to handle as efficiently as someone who specializes. then your skill is to learn how to control all the geniuses you have on your team. in the sopranos each soldier knows more about their micro-operations than tony; that way they do all the legwork, and he just collects his cut; even his psychiatrist, who ultimately works for him, tipped him off that his mother tried to kill him by interpreting his dream because she is so much smarter than him in the subconscious department.
Controlling all the geniuses on your staff is always hard (or at least from me). I always have a fear that I am going to lose my employees.
I am not sure if there is a solution for this other than to keep your employees happy.
You know the more successful you become, the harder it is to keep staff loyal. They see how you do things, emulate and copy many aspects of your program and become your competition. I guess the best case scenario then is to treat them well as you say, then at least they are allies rather than enemies. Like you said it pays to have people have your back. I wonder what your experience is with your own staff. I’ve found that about 2 years is the limit until people open up shop for themselves, the entrepreneurial souls on our staff can’t work for others for too long. It is against their nature.
Therefore the better your staff is, the more likely they are to jump ship in due time. This means that no matter how great an organization you have ( like Google for instance) when the time comes and they can cash out, they will. You can profit from this and help them succeed or you face competition that never needed to be.
for one, i know just b/c someone is an excellent technician – like a programmer, for instance – doesn’t mean they can run a programming company successfully; they need sales, administrative, and accounting skills, plus the eye to find good talent to do that work for them efficiently. i read in the e-myth, that’s why most businesses fail: technicians try to be entrepreneurs without acquiring the skills needed to run a business. in my experience, the smartest technicians love to do what they do like an actor and just want to do that in which they excel. they know that if they run their own businesses, they will have to get into sales, accounting, and other details that fall out of what they love doing. now if they are just being a technician as a back up while they build their business, they are not among the best technicians out there, because they don’t solely work on their craft; and even if they are so good that they have done so much for the company that you hate to see them leave, offer what you can in terms of money and quality of life, ensuring you’re still pulling a postive roi from them; if they go, f it, there are always good people out there that can continue to make your company great. more competition always grows your market.
Good points. I have lost a few staff members that think they can do design or marketing on their own after working with me. But after a few months on their own, they usually realize that it is very hard to succeed and it is much easier to work 9 to 5.
one more thing, there are always non-compete clauses in employment contracts where an employee agrees to not pursue a similar profession or trade in competition against their employer.
The problem with non-compete clauses is that they do not hold up well in certain states like California.
…and if that doesn’t work, shoot them in the FACE!
That’s a bad way to handle things unless you want to go to jail.
I would add one
its better to Have a gun and not need it, then to Need a gun and not have it.
this applies to marketing, business management
its always better to be prepared than to be caught off guard and defenseless
thanks and take care
bry
ROFL! You always want to be prepared for the unknown.
You’re right. Another thing they say, you can’t carry a police officer around however you can carry a piece around. The police are like historian, they always come AFTER the fact to report what happens. LOL
ROFL. That is so true.
LOL
“Money doesn’t always buy happiness” – that’s the best thing people can learn. I think a lot of people get so caught up in chasing the money that they realize what they really want out of life…to live.
Some people are satisfied with things that don’t include money, like helping others at a high level.
I think that if you are happy without money then money will makes things so much better as long as you do not change your ways.
More money more problems I think is the people that have a problem when they do not have money. Lives filled with drama!
Just like the song, the more money you come across, the problems you see. Don’t rely on money to solved problems, just think of it being able to create more options.
That is the thing, Neil. Money isn’t an end in itself. But it does help to create more options. Money in itself can never create happiness. But it really warms my heart when I see it used wisely, especially if it is used to help others. That is ultimately where happiness lies.
“Friends and family first” This is definitely a big one on my list. I definitely have not been spending enough time with my family and this helps me to remember that they should always come first.
Create a schedule and set up time for you to talk to them or to spend time with them everyday, that should give you your fix.
i agree with you matt this point is also very important because our family dont only want money, they require our attention and time so that they talk with us and share there problems. If anybody thinks that if we earn enough money for our family but dont give any time to them it’s is enough for them than it is his big mistake. we should make a schedule as neil mentioned and we should follow this schedule strickly.
Schedules are one of the hardest things to be disciplined on, but the good news is that as soon as you are, the easier it will be for you to succeed.
nice post, the most importat point according to me is that “Money doesn’t always buy happiness” as we can see in our socitey there r many people who earns a alot of money and they think by earning money they can buy all things but at last they admit they were wrong. But unfortunately many other people dont’t learn any lesson from these exmamples.
People end up making all these big purchases and then wind up in tough positions because they spend too much. You really need to stop spending a majority if not all the money you earn.
I like to helping others for nothing.Of course Im happy when I make a few bucks just to make a nice living for me and my family.
Well thats great Manz… you should hopefully live a life with complete satisfaction.
The smartest route isn’t always the easiest one. this one tend to stand out for me a bit more. as humans we always want the easiest and fastest way to get there, which of course puts us in a failure path. another great tip is the patience. we want it and we want it now. i have seen many times in forums and blogs people saying” i started my blog last week and i did everything you told me to do for getting traffic and this and that, but i still don’t get much traffic or am not making any money” it doesn’t happen over night. you put the seed down and nurture it and it becomes a strong big tree after years. it doesn’t become that the next morning!
That’s a great example. You do have to spend a lot of time and energy into growing something… especially if you goal is to make vast.
Wow.. thats really some positive thinking. I have never seen mafia stories this way.. but yeah confidence is one major factor that one has got to have to survive just anywhere.
Having a lot of confidence can take you further than you imagine.
I like the last tip the most! There are some rules of life that you’ll never hear them teaching in school or that you’ll never see written in any fancy book. Still these rules are as strong as life itself!
Street smarts goes a long way… That all comes from experience and day to day failures and success.
I like the 10th tip from your 11 tips. Money does not stay forever, but happiness stay forever.
I simply agree to your tip.
Yes, that’s why it’s so important to learn the process of building wealth.
Tip #6 Do not let things get to your head in life and make sure your respect and embrace your friends and family.
Agree One hundred percent.
Again, Great Post
Your mindset is so important. Having empowering friends and family will keep you in place and allow you to move forward in a healthy way.
Wayne Dyer has a little mind hack he uses that goes like this:
Tell Yourself_
” I want to feel Good”
He claims it sets his mind, or resets it really, and his inner subconcsious goes to work finding thoughts that cause a good feeling.
I find if I remember my goal or my original intent- Why I decided to do something in the first place…. Then I’m able to take everthing in stride and things just rock.
Thanks Neil
Joe @ Small business ideas
The subconscious plays a huge role with how you walk talk and act. Play close attention and focus on awareness.
Tony Soprano’s management lessons are quite interesting. I personally feel that- ideologically these tips- do matter in every field but success in any field hugely depends on the attitude we bring in to it and the brought up yopu’ve had from the childhood. Even TONY had grown up watching his dad do “things” and ultimately got inspired- what, now, his son’s trying to emulate.
Very True. Ideology is really important.
One of the traits you need.
Great show and I wish it never ended. Those are some great tips. If you want it, then go get it!
lol, yeah, you can definitely learn a lot from it.
Another oldie but goodie. I especially like the piece of advise that warns against showing off. Being ostentatious and over the top like a nouveau riche idiot is going to draw unneccessary attention to your doings. The limelight is not always a good thing, especially if you’re anything but a movie star…..
“The loudest one in the room is the softest” – American Gangster
I feel like if you are happy when you do not have a lot of money.. Having money will just make it ten times better….
The people that have more trouble when finally get rich are the people that only think that if they had more money they would be happy.
Do you agree with me?
If you think $$ will solve your problems, it will not. It just gives you OPTIONS.
Wow..great tips out there! I found it useful and very informative. I really like this post. Since these tips succeed other, why not us? Really useful for those like me. Got great post!
It’s funny how the sopranos would be able to give us such helpful business advice.
jaja its incredible that you found this in a mafia serie, but it makes sense if you think about it, those are old time values, and those dont expire, “ill give you an offer you cant regect”
I think you mean an offer you can’t refuse lol
What a great way to put it. I can see why this post is one of your favorites. I have already forward this to a few friends. great analogy.
Thanks I’d be interested to know what they think of it too.
Now that would be a great interview post! I am sure you could get an interview with the writers, if you tried. Or even better know any real mobsters, just kidding.
lol, yeah but I think it worked better as a strict comparison.
Self awareness all the time holds very important…
The Sopranes is one of the best shows ever created! really epic drama.
I once mentioned to a friend, that you can learn a lot from movies like Scarface, and he just looked at me like I some kind of psycho
Exactly.. you can always find an underlying message in anything.
I love this show…
There was a part in a film American Gangster – about the showing off.
He wore a fur coat to a boxing match and brought the attention of the police as to who he was. Some good lessons in that film as well.
Loudest one is the weakest one.
I’ve been checking out your favs Neil and this is my fav of your favs because I loved, loved, loved the Sopranos (bring them back). I’ll add one to this list “Fah getta bout it” If you make a mistake in business, don’t dwell on it – there is no use crying over spilled milk, learn from it and move on.
Exactly… I couldn’t have said it better myself.
To get a backbone is perhaps the most fundamental step for success. It is not in-born, you have to bring it out from your with your life experience. I have seen in life successful people are guys who have the spine to take decisions and actions no one else can.
Foundation is the reason why most people fail in whatever it is they do.
Just going through your favorites and surprise surprise…, barely minutes after watching HBO – Boardwalk Empire tv series in Singapore.
Like your interpretation too.
lol, I’ve never seen it.
Good laugh with the Sopranos and good tips here Neil!
Cheers,
Mike
haha thanks!
Hi Neil
Another fabulous post. You have given me some inspiration to write about Neil.
The above post does provide the necessary principles of how to live properly in this world we live in. Heres a quote I have seen many times:
If you open it, close it.
If you turn it on, turn it off.
If you unlock it, lock it up.
If you break it, admit it.
If you can’t fix it, call in someone who can.
If you borrow it, return it.
If you value it, take care of it.
If you make a mess, clean it up.
If you move it, put it back.
If it belongs to someone else, and you want to use it, get permission.
If you don’t know how to operate it, leave it alone.
If it’s none of your business, don’t ask questions.
If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.
If it will brighten someone’s day, say it.
If it will tarnish someone’s reputation, keep it to yourself.
~~ Author Unknown ~~
You are also right. Money does not always buy happiness but I must admit that money enables you to make many, many choices.
Family does certainly come first which to me is the foundation rock and nucleus to building a better society.
A recent quote on patience by Dieter F Uchtdorf
Patience means active waiting and enduring. It means staying with something and doing all that we can—working, hoping, and exercising faith; bearing hardship with fortitude, even when the desires of our hearts are delayed. Patience is not simply enduring; it is enduring well!
Thanks again Neil
Richard
The Sopranos Rock! That was definitely the show back then and still one of my favorites. Even though Tony and his crew can be just a lil violent in the way they do business, you can learn quite a bit from them. And obviously they are very successful at it.
Right? That show is definitely for the business savvy.
I’m a big fan of motivation and Ideas…… you Guys rock and i love it here. thanks for all the advices
Glad I could help. Thanks for your feedback
2.It is sad but majority of people would rather criticize than praise somebody who is famous or successful. 4. You never know upfront which road is the smartest for sure
If I would hear these rules without the introduction I would never thought that they come from one of most vicious and dangerous backgrounds 
haha, very true. Some of these lines are downright vicious.
I know one thing for sure money can’t buy you happiness but can solve some of your problems. Also friends and family are your emotional backbone which you can’t neglect.
True points, I agree. I was referring to emotional business contacts. Family is family
Family and friends are definitely the most important things, as they bring purpose to life.
Definitely have to learn to stand up for yourself. People will be very happy to walk over you to achieve their goals, so don´t let them.
Absolutely, without confidence in yourself you will loose yourself. You have your best interest in heart and need to remember others have theirs as well.
I love it what a great analogy!