Winter TCA: 'Shark Tank' star calls corporate ladder 'all crap'

"That's what made this country great in the first place and will make it great again," he added. O'Leary scoffed at workers who plod at companies in an effort to work their way up: "That's all crap," he said.

What isn't crap? Recent ratings for "Shark Tank," the reality show in which aspiring entrepreneurs pitch ideas to O'Leary and other potential investors. The show -- which struggled to find an audience its first couple of seasons -- has finally settled into a solid spot for ABC on Friday nights.

"There is no question this year that something tipped," O'Leary said.

Maybe viewers are tuning in to get more of O'Leary's sunny personality? When co-star and fellow panelist Robert Herjavec questioned O'Leary's I-want-results-now investment approach, saying that "sometimes you have to take a short-term pain to make a long-term gain," O'Leary shot back: "And sometimes you go out of business doing that."

What do you think of "Shark Tank" and O'Leary?

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