Financial Lessons From The Walking Dead

With Season 8 of The Walking Dead about to come to an end (no spoilers here!), I thought it was about time to do what I did with Game Of Thrones – and discover what financial lessons the popular show can offer us.

Rich or poor, it doesn’t really matter. Whatever the size of your wallet, it’s the size of your weapon that really matters in the world of zombies. Death doesn’t discriminate.

Conserve your resources

The only thing your financial state might allow you to do is stock up on supplies but a zombie bite is a zombie bite, regardless of your bank balance. We may lose people and end up as The Widow but we can move forward whatever is thrown at us. Whatever you’ve got, survival is key, just like in life.

So conserving supplies is important. Team Rick have struggled at times with needing food, equipment, resources. It’s actually the difference between life and death on the TV show. In our world though, conserving your resources can help you cut down on spending. This could be buying in bulk or batch cooking, wearing a jumper instead of turning up the thermostat or even walking instead of using petrol in the car. It will all make a difference and add up.

Its good to talk

Communication is vital. The characters on the show find themselves in situations where decent communication is so important, from writing letters to walkie talkies. Whether that’s dealing with a herd of walkers, putting into action a plan to fight an enemy or working together to escape the clutches of cannibal scum at Terminus, communications lines are integral. This is the same in the home environment. Discussing finances of the household, worries, woes, dreams, ambitions. Having open communication lines is important to financial health. Bad decisions can lead to bad situations.

If you run a business, be good to your staff

This one focuses on business, by gaining employee buy-in with rewards. Whilst Negan’s structure is ‘rewarding’ people by not caving in their skulls with Lucille if they do what he asks, your employees will be much more interested in working hard if there is reward. Whether that is a decent wage, office benefits, flexitime or something else, they’ll work harder if they are happy with the rewards they are getting and buy into the ethos and direction of the company which should ultimately makes you more money as a business owner.

Adapt to survive

Some characters on the show cant get their head around what is happening and that often leads to their downfall. Adapting to this ‘new world’ that they find themselves in is key to survival, equipping themselves with a weapon, learning how to kill a zombie, discovering where food can be foraged and what they can and can no eat. It’s proper survival. Taking this into our world, if you find yourself in financial difficulty, you must adapt in order to survive the situation. Burying your head in the sand will not help. Face problems head on and come up with new ways to find solutions. Sometimes things aren’t all right and we aren’t happy with it, but if we learn to accept change, changing ourselves and our outlook, we’ll not only survive, but thrive.

Whether you’re one of the saviours, or living on a hill top, there are lessons to be learned from from the TV screen. What more will we learn about The Walking Dead world and also our own lives in season 9? Until then, don’t get bitten!

Photo by Priscilla Du Preez on Unsplash