On The Office, Ryan Howard is one of the cockiest workers at Dunder Mifflin but is also one of the least successful characters at the office. His toxic relationship with Kelly gets in the way of his growth, and his co-workers don’t respect him or his work. Come to think of it, Ryan Howard has one of the saddest lives in the office.
Ryan mocks Jim for staying at a job he loathes but Ryan does the same thing. Ryan doesn't want to sell paper. Everything he does is for attention, not because he’s following his own path. If it weren’t for Michael’s (and Kelly’s) obsession with Ryan, who’s to say he would still be working at Dunder Mifflin?
Michael Embarrassed Him At School
Michael was impressed when Ryan informed him that he was getting his MBA. Ryan's dream at the start of the series was to one day start his own business. For bonus points, Ryan had the option to ask his boss to come into class to talk about Dunder Mifflin and the paper industry to the class. Michael took the action seriously but had no idea what he was talking about.
It was a bunch of nonsense that was thrown back in his face after Ryan's classmates asked Michael questions he couldn't answer. Michael was so embarrassed that he took it out on Ryan, but it was Ryan who should have been embarrassed by Michael!
He Was A Temp Who Got Sucked Into A Job He Hated
At the start of the series, Ryan was hired via a temp agency. He was getting his MBA and wanted some business experience, However, it didn't take long for Ryan to realize working at Dunder Mifflin wasn't a long-term career choice for him.
He hated being a temp but hate selling paper even more. As years went on, it's surprising that it took Ryan so long to quit. He hated his job, which is sad when around people who like it.
He Wasn’t Good At Sales
When Ryan started at Dunder Mifflin, he was begging to get into sales for a chance to earn a commission. Dwight took him under his wing but it wasn't the training Ryan was looking for.
It wasn't until Stanley took Ryan with him on a sales call that viewers saw how awkward Ryan was at sales. At the end of the scene, Stanley laughed at how bad Ryan was, but you can't help but feel bad for Ryan. He has no idea what he's doing and no one is giving him the help that he needed.
He Lost Dunder Mifflin Hundreds Of Thousands Of Dollars
At the end of season three, corporate didn't hire Michael, Jim, or Katen to work at headquarters but they did hire Ryan. He went on to be one of the young vice presidents in company history and then took charge of new media. One of his main projects was to create Dunder Mifflin an innovative website where clients could order paper online.
However, by season four, Ryan's website wasn't doing as well as he promised and he was arrested for misleading the shareholders (aka fraud). Truly a terrible moment for the character.
Michael Never Took Him Seriously
As a temp and later, a salesman, Ryan was eager to learn. Since he was in school at that time he was trying to make a name for himself. But Dunder Mifflin wasn't what Ryan was looking for because Michael didn't respect him.
As Ryan's boss, Michael could have been a mentor to him but he instead treated Ryan like a young boy who was lucky to be there. He made him clean out his car when Katy the purse girl was there and he called Ryan into the office early to get him a McDonald's breakfast sandwich. Ryan was never trained to do something more.
He Watched Kelly Grow And Move On
As toxic and annoying as Ryan and Kelly are, that doesn't mean it's not upsetting for them when the two of them broke up "for good." When Kelly moved on with Pam and Jim's friend Ravi, she had finally met her match. He was gorgeous and successful and treated Kelly like a queen.
The two were so serious that Kelly quit her job to move with him to Ohio. Ryan was so upset at Kelly's departure that he too quit his job and moved to Ohio. Ryan and Kelly were hilariously offbeat but it's sad watching a person one loves move on with someone better.
He Went From Corporate Headquarters to A Bowling Alley
Ryan deserved to be arrested for fraud but if we put ourselves in Ryan's shoes, it's upsetting to see his fall from grace. How do you go from being the youngest VP in company history to working at a bowling alley?
There's no way Ryan was happy with himself after his arrest. He lost everything, which is terrifying.
His One Business Idea Failed
In season two, Ryan told Michael and Dwight his dream was to one day start his own business. Michael laughed at his dream until he realized how much Ryan knew about business. Nothing came to fruition for Ryan until season seven when he created a technology called WUPHF.
WUPHF was a one-stop-shop for messaging that seemed convincing at first. But after Ryan demanded more money and time from his investors (i.e. his colleagues that invested), the gig was up. No one wanted to be apart of it but Michael, but even Michael was overruled. Ryan ended up selling WUPHF's domain and paying his friends back.
He Accidentally Started A Fire
In the episode "The Fire," a fire breaks out in Dunder Mifflin's kitchen, causing everyone to evacuate. At the end of the episode, it's revealed that whoever was using the toaster is the one who started the fire.
And that fire-starter was Ryan. As frustrating as Ryan is, his nickname was then changed from "temp" to "Fire Guy."
He Has No Idea Who He Is As A Man
As confident as Ryan acts, it's all a facade. He loses his drive at work and his morals only worsened. He even started changing his appearance. From facial hair to scarves to bowties to poetry readings... Ryan had no idea who he was and was trying to find himself through different avenues. But it didn't really work.
Ryan was no better off at the end of the series than he was in season one. If anything, he became worse when he left his child at a wedding to run away with Kelly.