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Broadcast #3: Guest Speaker Erik

Thank you for tuning in tonight. You can call me Chunky, and I will be your audio host for the evening. Without further ado, let's begin.

For tonight's segment, we talk about our (relatively) recent guest speaker Erik Hanberg.


When Erik came into the studio, we knew he was gonna tell us about like as an entrepreneur. He is a well accomplished one himself, and is in a position to offer his own unique experiences in the field. What he shared with us was a very real-world perspective on how and why to be an entrepreneur, and what it's like to live the life of one. He shared with us a very sobering look into the realities of entrepreneurism, and it opened my eyes to what to expect from such a lifestyle.

The first thing he talked about was how he actually came into being an entrepreneur. His beginnings were humble, starting out of a small theater. When brought on to manage the theater, he saw it needed to be systematized. There was a need for autonomy, and so he sought to fill it. In short order, he elevated the level operation within the theater to a place where it could function as a well oiled machine, with no direct oversight or intervention. This sparked the "dangerous thought" in his mind.

Well, what exactly was this dangerous thought? Simply put, it was that he built a system that was taking in money, all without his presence or attention. That isn't so dangerous, is it? As a matter of fact, it can be for one simple reason; once you have that thought, that you can build something that can bring in money with no hands on the wheel, it can be very very difficult to ignore that thought. By simply acknowledging this fact, it becomes hard to force yourself out of bed in the morning, to clock in to a job you tolerate, that takes all your time and energy, all for a check to keep the lights on. Why do all that when you can just make your own business and let it print money for you?

Of course, this isn't the case. If it were that easy, everyone would have their own business and be millionaires. So what is it really like to be an entrepreneur? In a word: difficult. In three words: really, insanely difficult. Erik shared a book with us called The Four Hour Work Week. In his own words, he said this title was "compelling," but it represented a goal he had yet to achieve; the truly autonomous money printing business.

So what did I get out of this? Did I realize that being an entrepreneur is a terrible idea? Did it scare me so bad I started shaking in my boots in terror, questioning why I would ever do such a thing? No, of course not. If anything, I was shaking with anticipation. I would love nothing more than to start a business I am totally dedicated to, enthralled with, willing to pour my blood sweat and tears into. What I took from this was simply that my dedication to whatever business I start must be unshakable, unbreakable. And that doesn't sound so bad to me.

And with that, I must bring this broadcast to a close. Don't you worry though, there'll be plenty more to come, so stay tuned.

Tonight's vibe is.... High Fidelity.

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