For seven seasons, Michael Scott was the heart and soul of The Office. He brought everyone together and loved them all as if they were family. Unlike everyone else at Dunder Mifflin, Michael saw the workplace as a dreamland. But behind Michael’s childlike enthusiasm was a very sad and lonely man.
Michael acted like a kid because there was a huge piece of himself that he wasn’t happy with. As a middle-aged man, he didn’t have the wife and family he thought he would. To combat his loneliness, he filled his days with pranks and lighthearted meetings, but that didn’t stop the likes of Jim and Pam from realizing how isolated Michael was outside of work.
His Relationship With His Mom And Stepfather
Not much is known about Michael’s youth but it’s enough to tug on the heartstrings of any breathing soul. He’s seen talking on the phone with his mom a few times over the series, but it looks like they’re not as close as Michael wishes.
When Michael was a child, his mother remarried a man named Jeff. Michael hated Jeff so much that he even started crying and wet his pants on their wedding day. In “Nepotism,” viewers learned that Michael had step-siblings but they were sadly estranged. Knowing that Michael comes from a broken home could be the reason behind his breakdowns.
He Was Slow To Living His Dream
Before falling for Holly, viewers find out in “Take Your Daughter To Work Day” that Michael wasn’t a fan of children and hated the theme of the day. But as it turned out, he hated the theme because he didn’t have children of his own. It was a sore spot for him. He’s dreamed about having a family since he was a child himself.
He showed the children of Dunder Mifflin an old TV show that he was on where he told the puppet his dream was to get married and have “100 kids” so that he would have “100 friends” and no one could say no to being friends with him. This made present-day Michael emotional as he was a man in his forties who was no closer to realizing his dream.
He Never Became The Success He Imagined He Would
Not only did Michael find himself unmarried and without children in his forties, but he also lacked the affluence he thought he’d have. In the cringe-worthy episode “Scott’s Tot’s,” Michael promised an entire classroom tuition for college. He assumed by the time that kindergarten class became seniors in high school, he would have millions to donate. But as it turned out, Michael was nowhere near his goal. In fact, he was essentially bankrupt and broke. This sad realization was heavy on Michael as he apologized to the entire class.
He Bought A House For A Family He Didn’t Have
When Michael did have a little extra cash, he spent it on a down payment for his home. With Carol and Dwight’s help, Michael bought a condo he could “fill with children.” He said this during his very public and toxic argument with Jan in “Dinner Party.”
Sadly, Michael never filled that condo with children. In fact, Jan was forceful enough to encourage Michael to get a vasectomy. It wasn’t until Michael met Holly that his dream of becoming a father became a reality years later in Colorado.
The Reason He Became A Salesman
In the episode “The Fire,” the entire office is waiting in the parking lot as the fire department handles a fire that took place in the kitchen. Michael spends most of the time mingling with Ryan and fawning over his MBA plans. In return, he tells Ryan that the reason he became a salesman was to make friends. But once he excelled at sales and became a manager, no one wanted to be his friend anymore because he was above them. So, while he was good at his job, it was his job that separated him bonding with his colleagues. All Michael wanted was to be part of the pack but it never happened.
He Doesn’t Want To End Bad Relationships Out Of Fear Of Being Alone
It can be hard to get out of bad relationships because of the prevalent fear of being alone. If Michael broke up with Jan, would he find love again? That was the tennis match Michael had been playing in his mind.
With the help of the women of Dunder Mifflin, Michael ended his time with Jan and tried getting back out there. Things were looking up when he met Donna but once again, his dreams went up in smoke. Donna was a great gal but she was married; Michael was her secret lover and he continued with the relationship because he was again scared of being alone. But viewers all knew he was deserving of a better romance than that.
He Wanted An Education But Never Got It
The reason why Michael has a big crush on Ryan is because he is everything Michael wasn’t. Although Ryan lived with his mom and didn’t have kids, he was handsome and had a great reputation with the ladies. He was also well-educated.
At the beginning of the show, Ryan was getting his MBA and had dreams of starting his own business. Michael began asking Ryan business questions and said he always wanted to go to college but couldn’t when he lost his money in a “pyramid scheme.” Many think Michael likes Ryan for his good looks but it’s deeper than that. He was envious of the the path Ryan was on — before jail, of course.
He’s Abandoned By His Grandmother
Barbara Kevis (also known as Nana) is Michael’s beloved grandmother. It’s not known which side of the family Nana is on, but it’s made clear that Michael cherishes her. Fans eventually meet her in “Dream Team” when Michael needs a loan for the Michael Scott Paper Company. And while Michael thought he could depend on his Nana for help, she cut him loose. She told him she didn’t trust his business plan and that he “always” did this. Once Michael realized he didn’t have the trust from his own Nana, a light faded in him.
No One Else Related To His Motto
Michael has said it from the start: his workplace is his family. Although things get tense with work, he would do anything for his employees and expects the same in return. But when he finds out his employees don’t see his workplace motto the same way he does, a little piece of him dies inside.
He once said Dunder Mifflin should be a “place where dreams come true,” but when Ed Truck and Holly Flax told him work and home-life should be separate, Michael couldn’t disagree more. It made him angry that he was the lone wolf.
His Desire To Be Liked
One of Michael’s biggest flaws is needing to be liked. This compulsion means he never has a chance to fully be himself because he’s too busy trying to be someone that’s likable by all. In reality, no one is liked everyone. Jim is one of the most likable characters and yet he has moments where his co-workers hate him — especially when he becomes co-manager.
In the episode “Counseling,” Michael told Toby that being liked was important to him. And that everyone at work deserved respect, even the managers of baseball teams.
