Most of us retreat to the television when we want to escape the drudgery of everyday life. We lose ourselves in shows where we can laugh at others and enjoy a story. But have you ever noticed that a lot of successful sitcoms have been centered round work?
Call it art reflecting society if you want, but it’s obvious that even on television, the lives of those made up characters are centered around work. And if we study some of them closely, we may even learn a thing or two about work ethic and personality.
A few examples include:
The Office: Sure, no one has ever had a boss quite like Michael Scott. And that’s a good thing. While most of the comedy on The Office is nearly slapstick and wouldn’t take place in a real office setting (we hope), the relationships of the workers at Dunder Miflin is one we could all hope to aspire to.
Cheers: is there a better example of stellar customer service that pulling up a seat at a bar where everybody knows your name? When was the last time you visited a bar or diner of any kind and got the royal treatment the patrons got at Cheers?
30 Rock: The situations encountered by Liz Lemon and her co-workers are, like The Office, a bit out there. But Liz and company served as something as a second work for some—an escape where we could hope for such an exciting work environment at our own jobs.
WKRP in Cincinnati: Something of a forgotten gem, this show was about a radio station that was struggling until management altered their direction and branding towards rock. This is a great and funny example of how to handle running a business that is in the midst of crisis nearly every other week.
How about you? What are some of your favorite work-oriented television shows?