Barbara Corcoran may be best known for her 17 seasons on Shark Tank, but the real estate mogul—who sold her company for $66 million in 2001—says one trait tells her instantly whether an entrepreneur will flop or succeed.
“I pay close attention to who takes responsibility and who plays the blame game,” Corcoran told the Wake-Up Call at Work newsletter.
“Six months after Shark Tank, something always goes wrong—the supplier didn’t deliver, the molds were wrong, an employee messed up. But the minute an entrepreneur starts blaming the next guy, I know it’s over and they’re going to lose my money.”
For Corcoran, accountability isn’t just a nice-to-have trait, it’s the ultimate red flag. And she would know—during her 17 seasons on the entrepreneurial pitching show, Corcoran invested in hundreds of companies, transforming many of her partners into overnight millionaires.
One of the most lucrative for her was a $50,000 investment for a 30% stake in The Comfy, a wearable blanket company that has since made more than $450 million. Still, she said what matters the most isn’t the product—it’s the ambition and attitude of its founders.
