How to Be a Boss (According to Your Favorite Shows)

Look, I had big plans for today. “Are you still watching?” the screen asks after my sixth episode in a row of Animal Hoarders. It’s not my fault, of course—Netflix is designed to be binged.

If there’s one skill I’m proud of, though, it’s my ability to justify anything (endorse me on LinkedIn?), and I’ll argue that there are lessons to be learned from the parade of characters lulling me to sleep with a half-eaten taco in one hand. Take Veronica Lodge, the precocious Riverdale high-schooler turned business tycoon, or the inmates who built underground empires in Orange Is the New Black. Against odds—mob boss dads and prison bars—they are owning their boss status. And, outside of TV land, real live bosses are doing the same by taking on major debt, quitting lucrative careers, and challenging industry norms to start their own businesses.

That’s why, though they’re highly entertaining (“Really, Dayna, another episode of Cheapest Weddings?”), the trials and tribulations of Jon Snow or Selina Meyer or Tasha “Taystee” Jefferson are sometimes too real. And their stories all confirm one thing: being a boss (whatever that means to you) can be hard.

So you wanna be a boss. Netflix and chill will yourself to get off the couch already. How to Be a Boss (According to Your Favorite Shows) is your excuse to binge all the TV you want. It’s career inspiration, right? As for me, chain-watching teen dramas now qualifies as research to bring you this informative series. We all win.