---
title: "Want to succeed as an entrepreneur? Be like Tom Haverford!"
url: https://burnaze.com/article/9d63fab3-a035-4621-9989-7a5f36318142
source: "1851 Franchise"
original_url: https://1851franchise.com/want-to-succeed-as-an-entrepreneur-be-like-tom-haverford-1211
category: "General"
published: 2015-02-26T17:12:05.000Z
modified: 2026-11-01T22:34:29.653Z
image: https://newimage.1851franchise.com/cdn-cgi/image/quality=85,format=webp,width=1280,height=720/story/featureImage/867419825acac2aed13b3d68dc7a8fe02313.jpg
---

# Want to succeed as an entrepreneur? Be like Tom Haverford!

**TL;DR:** The article uses Tom Haverford from 'Parks and Recreation' as an example of an enthusiastic entrepreneur, highlighting the importance of learning from failures and maintaining a positive attitude. Tom's attempts to franchise his restaurant, Tom's Bistro, were unsuccessful, but he continued to pursue his entrepreneurial dreams.

*originally published in 1851 Franchise on 2015-02-26. [Read the original](https://1851franchise.com/want-to-succeed-as-an-entrepreneur-be-like-tom-haverford-1211).*

## Story

The small town slice of life that was “Parks and Recreation” - complete with irreverent comedy, heartwarming character beats and a rogues gallery of ridiculous Indiana denizens - has come to an end. But dry your eyes and take heart, TV viewers (and 1851 readers) - Tom Haverford’s crazy (and highly unsuccessful) business ideas will live on forever to inspire us. As played by the one-and-only Aziz Ansari, Tom Haverford wasn’t just comedic relief on the show, he was also the world’s greatest entrepreneur.

Perhaps not great in terms of actually creating a long-lasting and profitable business, but at the very least unparalleled in his enthusiasm and willingness to get back up and dust himself off after getting thrown from the proverbial horse. The finale ended with the news that (this is where I’m contractually obligated by the Internet police to write SPOILER ALERT) Tom’s attempts to franchise his restaurant, Tom’s Bistro, had been unsuccessful and very costly. However, in Tom Haverford’s mind, the closing of one door just means the opening of another.

Our business-minded hero decided to write a book detailing his various failures as a way for others to learn from his mistakes and become successful themselves, thereby achieving his own dreams of becoming an entrepreneurial impresario. So what’s the takeaway from all this? Well, first of all, successfully franchising a business is a hell of a lot harder than it may appear to industry outsiders.

And secondly, failure is not a permanent state, but a temporary setback. If Tom Haverford could finally achieve success after all these years, what’s stopping you from doing the same?The key is keeping a positive attitude, learning from your mistakes and being willing to get back on the horse.

In short, if at first you don’t succeed, try, try, try again. At the very least you’ll make Tom Haverford proud. And if you’re a fan of the dope video above, thank the dope video makers at AskMen.

## Entities

- 1851 Franchise (publication)
- General (sector)
- franchising (topic)
- entrepreneurship (topic)
- positive attitude (topic)
- business failure (topic)

---
Originally reported by 1851 Franchise (https://1851franchise.com/want-to-succeed-as-an-entrepreneur-be-like-tom-haverford-1211). Summarized by Burnaze (https://burnaze.com/article/9d63fab3-a035-4621-9989-7a5f36318142).