ASHISH NATHU
February 3, 2022
12:07 pm
On this episode of The Rich Equation Podcast, Ashish is joined by Brent Warr. Ashish and Brent discuss entrepreneurship, attaching your identity to your business and so much more. Brent speaks about leaving his job to pursue his furniture company full time and shares some of the challenges he has faced along the way of this transition. Brent talks about how he gets into creative mindsets that allow him to make art and also what he draws inspiration from. Ashish and Brent speak about the importance of learning to fail and Ashish shares some of the things he wish he knew at the start of his career.
HIGHLIGHTS:
0:00 – Ashish shares a brief introduction to his guest Brent 4:57 – Brent gives us an insight into his life and how he got to where he’s at now 10:46 – Brent shares how he quit his job three weeks ago to go full time with his furniture company 13:01 – Brent speaks about how he gets into creative mindsets 18:06 – Brent talks about his work ethic and how he will outwork people who have higher levels of education/experience than him 19:01 – Brent mentions how he is really looking forward to working on the business side of his furniture company 21:29 – Brent speaks about identity and how he is a part of his furniture 24:07 – Brent talks on some of his biggest challenges on this journey, finances being the main one and meeting the right people being another 26:06 – Brent is currently letters to the top 180 designers that he would like to work with 29:00 – Ashish and Brent mention the journey is the most important part, but in the moment you don’t want to hear it 29:44 – Brent shares with us what he’s working on now 31:28 – Ashish asks Brent what he is most afraid of 33:42 – Brent states that when you have people who love your work and people who hate your work, that’s when you know you’re doing something right 35:47 – Ashish and Brent discuss the importance of learning how to fail 37:59 – Brent shares how living a rich life for him is living the three F’s: Fullness, Freedom and Finance 40:22 – Brent asks Ashish what’s one thing that he wish he would’ve known at the start of his career and what are some things he wishes he could go back and do
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FULL TRANSCRIPTION:
Ashish Nathu I have Brent Warr with me. Brent is a furniture designer specializing in sculptural, art, collectible furniture and lighting based in Atlanta, Georgia, Bren views that his designs and art should make others feel a bit uncomfortable and helping them reach a more imaginative part of themselves. After working a few years at some of the best design firms in hospitality in us, Brennan went out on a whim and started his own design studio of custom made products. And just three weeks ago, he went full time in his endeavor. In this episode, we hear from Brandon about how he gets into the creative mindset and how he gets inspired to get things done, how we shouldn’t try to impress everyone with what we create, because there’s always something out there for everyone. And finally, we talk about how identity and the fear of failing are real challenges as an entrepreneur and what we can do to overcome these fears, to continue to drive forward.
Ashish Nathu This kid has some really big things coming, and I’m so appreciative of his tenacity. I know you will get so much out of this episode. Here he is Brent bore. And remember if you enjoy this podcast or find it valuable in any way, you have a duty to share with someone else who may indeed hear this message or can get value from this content and remember to subscribe to the podcast and leave a review so we can continue to bring massive value to you and go to our website, the rich equation, podcast.com to be added to our mailing list for special access and content. Now here’s the episode.
Narrator Welcome to the rich equation podcast. Are you ready to discover how to live rich today and not wait for retirement? If you’re tired of struggling and want to live your best life now, your in the right place and principles will no longer work in today’s environment. It’s time for a new approach. Your host will help you discover methods to live the new American dream. It’s time to start living the good life on your own terms and experience a new way to live rich. Rich. Now here’s your host. She’s not through
Ashish Nathu Mr. Brent war. Welcome to the podcast. My friend, I’m really honored that you’re here. Thanks.
Brent Warr I am so excited to be here. I first off, I want to thank you. You know, we, we briefly met at a furniture and design show in New York and something that really spoke to me, you know, when we were briefly talking and talking afterwards through social media, you, you know, were really keen on creating this community for Kronos creatives, entrepreneurs, people in all these different sectors to kind of come together. And I think this is, you know, just so great what you’re doing and in terms of your company and your business, as well as the podcast. Yeah. So I’m so excited to be here and, and you know, I’m looking forward to it.
Ashish Nathu Well, it’s not about me today. It’s about you. And I’m excited about chip pulling all the good stuff out of you today. And like you said, we met at, in New York a few months ago at a big hospitality trade show. And for the first time at this show, and I wouldn’t have met you otherwise, but at the first time at that show, they had a sort of a boutique type part of the show. I forget what it’s called. Maybe you can explain more. It was called, wanted design, where they brought a very up and coming designers, entrepreneurs, what do you call? It was like more workshoppy yeah, yeah. Like artists.
Brent Warr Yeah, it was. So they, they kinda, this it’s this group out of New York called one design and said they basically created this very, very specialized, like high-end younger, new and emerging designers. And so they, they kind of selected around 20 to 30 people from all over the U S as well as we had, there was a couple people there for the, were from Canada and Montreal. And so, yeah, there were, you know, people that are newer and younger and coming up
Ashish Nathu And all you guys are like artisans and creatives, but also like starting off entrepreneurs. And what really spoke to me was like, you know, I saw what my life was 10 years ago and you guys, and I just got so jazzed about being able to talk to you guys and share it. And I’m really excited that you’re here to share your journey. And so I guess as we, as we get into it, I really want people to understand your journey. And if you could start with that and tell us about how you got here and how you got, tell us a little bit about your, your business and, and what you, you know, what your creative focuses in your art. And tell us a little bit about your business, but tell us about your journey and let’s start there and then we’ll get into some other topics.
Brent Warr Okay, perfect. Yeah. So a little bit of a background I’m originally from the south grew up in a very, very small town in Georgia, ended up going to university. It, it Auburn university in Alabama. And so went to school for this. It was a design degree called environmental design, which is, is a very interesting major when I studied it. It has nothing to do with what I’m doing now, which is very interesting. However, the one really amazing thing, it was kind of an interdisciplinary design degree, but it focused on holistic design thinking and that was the entire basis for the major. And so I think that’s something that has really trans, you know, transferred into like what I’m currently doing now. That’s like the one big thing. And so, yeah, after college moved up to New York and worked for a huge hospitality from there, and then, you know, over COVID the, we actually laid off around, or they laid off around probably a third of third of the firm, which was unfortunate, but it was kind actually a blessing in disguise for me personally.
Brent Warr And so moved back home to Atlanta and was really struggling to figure out what I wanted to do. You know, I’m just to be very honest, I’m young, I’m 24. So I’m like, you know, haven’t been in the industry too long, but I have always known, you know, my dad owns two companies and I’ve watched him from a young age, build those up from nothing and BNB, you know, extremely successful in what he’s done. And I get a ton of, you know, my work ethic from him and my mom and my mother too. So, but yeah, moving back to Atlanta was, it was, it was weird. I, I, you know, I was like, New York is going to be, I’m going to be here for eight, you know, six, 18 minute design thing. I’m going to work a hundred hours a week. And I know it’s like, I’m going to work my ass off, but I’m going to, I’m going to be someone and I’m going to like, enjoy the struggle through it, you know?
Brent Warr And yeah. Then out, you know, Atlanta, I was like, oh, I’ll move back at, you know, mid thirties, settled down whatever. And did not think I’d be moving back. Exactly. But it’s, you know, it’s and so anyway, moving back, obviously over COVID everything was, you know, no one was hiring and, and especially even in the south, I was like, you know, I have design experience in this amazing farm in New York city. Like I have all these things under my belt and top five, right? Like top two, top five kind of firm in the United States. It was an amazing, we, we, yeah. I mean, the firm was Meyer Davis studio. We do, we did hospitality. And like, you know, when I was there, we were working in 10, 12 different countries all over the world. And I love my team, a great Davis. One of the owners, he is a close family friend of ours and he’s amazing.
Brent Warr But yeah. Anyway, so moving back home, I was very frustrated because I was getting into second, third round interviews and with firms and people in Atlanta and, you know, I would, you know, can I get to a point and then I wouldn’t get the job. And so I was, I was, I was, excuse my language, very fucking frustrated. It’s like, I’m supposed to, I was pissed off. And I was like, you know, I, I view myself as like, like in, in a humble way was like, you know, I’m better than this. There are people who I view as less talented than I am in the design world. And they started their own thing. So why can’t I start my own thing? Damn right. And so, yeah, I, funny enough literally was, it was like I was asleep and this was my old apartment in like downtown and woke up at like 3:00 AM.
Brent Warr And I was like, I’m gonna make furniture. Like, where’d the hell did that come from? And it really, yeah. Yeah. Seriously. I, and so I will say this about my, my previous job. We did a lot, a ton of designing of like high-end custom furniture and FFNE for all these different resorts or residential projects. And so I was working on some, a lot of that stuff. So I fell in love with like truly unique. And like, what I’m getting into now is the collectible design. So like additions, like basically in the collectible design world was like, I’m this one chair a very certain way. And it’s only one of 12 ever made. And it’s always an addition. And so I just fell in love with, with that side of the design world. And I was like, you know, like, I’m gonna get into this. And like, I don’t know where I’m going to start.
Brent Warr Cause I don’t know how to do wood work. I don’t know how to do all this stuff. And I’m just going to really figure out, you know, and I was like, yeah. And they’re really gonna figure it out. And so started working on that. And really honestly in a week, came up with an entire seven piece collection, like on a week and just sketching things out and figuring things out. And yeah. And so I was super excited and fun. And so I actually got a call from a recruiter who is a friend of mine in New York city, a job recruiter and December of 2020. And he was like, Hey, I have an opportunity for you. It’s a business development position with this amazing design firm, like in like phenomenal top five firm in New York city. And I was like, I, I, I actually picked up the phone.
Brent Warr I told him, I told him no, and I hung up and I was like, no, I was like, I’m focusing on my furniture. I’m doing this. And 10 minutes later, I called him back. I was like, actually, like, I, I, I’m telling, you know, like I would love to at least interview with them. And basically, yeah. So I ended up getting the job, loved my team, worked for this firm for right about a year and was doing business development for them. And I knew I wanted to, I had the design background and I, I knew my lane, but I did not have any business acumen to go along with it. So I wanted to be working on the accounts. I want to be working on all of our contracts and proposals, all of the presentations that’s going out to our clients. Like I wanted to be on that side of things. So I could see how that side of things worked. Cause I didn’t not have any experience in that world. Sure. Yeah. So I just, I guess three weeks ago, quit my job and I’m going full-time with my furniture business and furniture and lighting sometimes super excited. And it was so
Ashish Nathu I love that and I admire your story and that at such a young age, to take that risk and you’re right, being laid off for your new job was probably one of the biggest blessings of your life. And the fact that you recognize that and realize that it’s like such a blessing, but you know, one of the things that really inspired me when I walked to that show and BD, and why was seeing all of you young entrepreneurs and creatives and like learning. I mean, there were so many lessons for me as we were building our business and we’re in the same industry. Right. But we achieved some level of scale that I was like, how do I help these entrepreneurs get to a place faster and more efficiently and at less cost than all of the mistakes and lessons that we learned in the same exact industry in the same exact space, because we see a lot of companies come in and out of our industry, but if you can group together and learn some of those things and share sources, you can, you have a higher probability of success.
Ashish Nathu So that’s kind of how we connected and just really, really proud of you and super excited to see what happens next. I guess I want to, I want to talk about, you know, for me, I, well, let’s, let’s start by, I want to talk about the difference between creating and operating for you. And, you know, as a, I’m a very operator brain, and I’m not an artist like you, like, you’re a creative for sure. Don’t ask me to design our furniture or customers, designer furniture. We just make it for them. But I guess, you know, how do you get into the creative mindset? How do you get to a place? Are you just waking up all the night, you know, every night with a beautiful design in your brain, like, do you get yourself, do you prime herself to be creative? Do you have a routine to get in the creative mindset? Like how do you, you blast music? What, because everyone needs to be in a creative space for certain things, whether you’re making art or you’re, you’re, you’re fixing a problem or whatever. Right. So how do we find that inspiration? I think,
Brent Warr I think, and this will be out. This will be, I’ll be very honest and transparent. I think what you’re saying is, is one so on the money. But I think for this is just me personally, and I can only talk from my experiences. I have to have my mindset in a very specific way for me to go about something. So like every day, or at least I tried to, not every day, I try to like, you know, get up early ish in the morning, around seven 40 or 6 45 7 go workout on the way. So I live at, in like north Atlanta, which is like 45 minutes from my studio right now. And so I will put on a podcast either. So like, right. I, I, what’s funny. I was actually, I’ve been listening to all of your past podcasts the past like week or two and you have some great, great content.
Brent Warr And then there’s another guy who actually listened to his name’s Jay long. He’s a creative entrepreneur out of Australia. Yeah. And he’s amazing. So I really, what pumps me up is getting my mindset into a place of, you know, I am, this is what I’m going to go do today. And I’m like excited and like, you know, whatever, like, no one’s going to like stop me. I, it good or bad. I fuel a lot off of people telling me I cannot do something. Or I feel awful of like funny enough, my, my furniture collection all came from, I was angry. I was, I was pissed off and that the entire collection came cause I was, I was pissed.
Ashish Nathu What do you mean? Like you were, you were upset about something and just that, that rage.
Brent Warr I was upset that I couldn’t get a job in Atlanta. I was upset that I couldn’t, that I, I, I view myself at this place where I, I think I can go really far in this industry and I was just frustrated. I was just frustrated. And so like that whole, it all came out of frustration and anger and, and I think it’s learning how to, okay, this is what that is. But then taking that and using it for something good, how can I use whatever that may be? Whether it’s, if you’re sad or happy, whatever that emotion is, how can I grab that? And that
Ashish Nathu Was your motivation.
Brent Warr Yeah. Yeah. W what, like how, how can you use that as motivation to do something, something great. And, and also too, I think it was something, what you, you know, you were talking about about all the you’re really inspired by seeing younger designers and entrepreneurs. I, in, in the way I look at it and, you know, some people view it differently, but I really think, you know, there’s, there’s a piece of the pie for everybody. Like it is so important as a community, especially in the creative world to like stick together. There is, there was built trillions of dollars out there for every P everyone has a lane and it’s, and it’s so important to, I think one, I will say this one, I think it’s important to try to find a lane early, as early, as you can try to find a niche and I can get into that in terms of my furniture in a minute.
Brent Warr So trying to find a niche early, as well as, you know, get, trying to find a community around you, whether it be in the same city, whether that be in like, like what you’re trying to create right now with your podcast and like, and your people that you’re having on here from LA to New York, to like all these different places, all over the world, trying to find a community because, you know, that’s something that I’m really looking to eventually try to do better in Atlanta of creating Atlanta is a very different creative design community than gr is. And the, the taste is also different in Atlanta. And so I had a personal, a friend of mine as well as she’s our consultant. And we were talking yesterday and she was like, you know, Atlanta is one of these places that it’s all amazing. And it’s great. It’s one of these places you can work, you can work out of, but you can not work from. And, and basically she’s saying by that, it’s, you know, it’s, there’s a specific taste level in Atlanta, which is, which is amazing and there’s a place for it, but it’s it. And for whatever,
Ashish Nathu It may not eat everything you’re serving.
Brent Warr Right. Right. Exactly. And to do things that are really creative and really out there, some people in Atlanta may not understand that. That’s okay. And that’s okay. So, yeah. And sorry, that was kind of a tangent that I know
Ashish Nathu That’s okay. Yeah. No, that makes a lot of sense. And I guess like, as a creative and as somebody who’s building something like you’re right. You’re, you’re not only creating for yourself, but you’re also creating for your customers. And so you, so if your customer is not where you are, you got to go find your customer is what you’re saying. Right.
Brent Warr Yeah. And I think too is like, especially being young, this industry or anything in the industry is like, you have to have a level of hustle and like, to know you’re going to do something. It may take six months a year. It may take five years, but like, like, dammit, I’m going to get somewhere. Cause like, I, I, you, man, this has always been my motto in terms of, of this mindset. And you know, it’s like, you may be more talented than me. I, there are a lot of people in this earth that are brilliant. They’re smarter than me or anyone they’re, you know, they’re more talented than me, but I will outwork you, you know, was like, I will, I will try my best to do as hard as I can to try to outwork you while still creating that community, I think is extremely important. And I, I can’t, you know, highlight that enough when
Ashish Nathu As an entrepreneur, do you find yourself getting more energized about the creative process and do create the art or now that you’re starting to achieve some level of, of business and selling and like growth? Like, are you, do you get more excited about selling product and doing the trade shows and meeting clients and doing the business stuff? Like what, what gets you more jazzed?
Brent Warr Yeah. I think it’s the first one. That’s a great question. And with, with what I’m doing, I think it’s, and, and you get this because you’re in this industry or very similar industry is, you know, I’m, I’m making a product physically with my hands. I’m not outsourcing it like me, myself. I am making everything. And so I’m viewing, I’m like, you know, this is, and I’m also making something that is going to last, like what I, a piece that I’m going to create is going to last, hopefully 10, 20, 30, 40, 50 years in someone’s home. Like they’re going to get joy and enjoyment out of that piece. And so I’m viewing as like I’m leaving a legacy. Like what, what can I do to leave something behind? And where is, where does that sound?
Ashish Nathu Does that sound weird
Brent Warr At all? Yeah, I know. And, and you know, and, and when I was getting into figuring out what I want you to do, cause I knew I wanted to start my own thing as I was like, what can I do? That’s this gonna S it’s gonna leave a mark. Like, how can I get into something that I can do personally with my hands and that it’s gonna leave a lasting impact on someone I love, you know, whether it’s like an, like a designer, you know, like a, you know, a furniture piece is it’s lasting is as long as it is and it’ll, and you can fix it or you can do it will, you know, we have furniture this lasted years and years and years. But whether it’s like interiors is like in 10 years, something is outdated and it gets ripped out. And so like, what can I, you know, try, I mean, it all comes down to like, am I leaving an impact?
Brent Warr Am I leaving an impact on what I’m making? Am I leaving an impact on my client? How am I doing in terms of a client experience? Am I leaving an impact on now? My, I have a new studio system. Like, how am I helping him grow? How, who, who, and what am I touching on a day-to-day base that I can leave an impact with? And I think that’s so important and something that, you know, cause it’s my name on the company. Like, it’s, it’s my name. I am based. Like, I, it’s not like, you know, if like, if God forbid I were to like leave this earth, like my company is over because I’m not here anymore. And, and so it’s
Ashish Nathu Terrifying. Well, it’s a, it’s a strong enough why to keep you so motivated that there is very little to no room for failure. And so I love that about your drive and you know, you’re still a young guy, lots of things can evolve and change over time. And, but that wise is incredibly powerful. What are some of your biggest challenges that you’ve experienced that you maybe were not prepared for in this journey?
Brent Warr well, one I think is finances is that that’s a big thing. You know, I had like a steady, steady income, like great benefits and like, that’s all gone. So, you know, realizing that like, okay, like I’m backed into a corner. I have to pay rent. I have to pay my studio rent. I have to do all these things. And so I think one is finances and just like figuring out what, you know, what all this looks like. Repeat, repeat what you just said again.
Ashish Nathu You see how it’s such a challenge that your mind went block. I love that. No. What are your, what are some of the biggest challenges that you’ve faced as you’ve gone through this, this build in this journey that you didn’t expect? Yeah. I mean, money, money and creating is, is not, you’re absolutely right. Like you need money to start your business. You need money to, you need to cashflow before you can pay yourself, like all those things as you’re building.
Brent Warr Right. And I think another one is huge. It’s just meeting the right people, you know, it’s at the end of the day, you can have millions of dollars, but if you don’t shake the right hands, it doesn’t matter. Like, you know, it’s like, it’s, it’s not, it’s who, it’s who you meet. This is the handshake. So my dad would say, but, but yeah, it’s, I, I w I would say right now in this, in this moment, in, in starting getting more, very serious about my company and what this looks like, it’s, it’s me, who am I meeting? And am I reading the right people? And my forming a relationship, not even can I sell a piece of them and am I just forming a relationship that may in six months, eight months, a year lead to a sale or lead to something, or they know someone. And I think that’s the challenge right now. So I’m, I have some exciting things going on that I can’t really like share right now, but I, you know, it’s like, I’m in the process of like,
Ashish Nathu Just putting yourself out there.
Brent Warr Yeah. I I’m like I’m actually right now in the process of writing letters, I’m writing 150 letters to the top, 150, well, not a top 150, but like, I’ve taught 180 list, architectural digest. And then some other designers who I love and, you know, would love to work with, and I’m literally writing them handwritten letters, like I’m in a process of it and I’m going to send them to every single person. And so it’s just typing takes. Yeah. You know, it’s, it’s a, it’s a hustle. And I, there definitely today’s, we’re one of the was one of the days it was, it was like hard. I was like, I am exhausted mentally. I don’t feel like I have what I want to creatively. And I think everyone experiences that. And even people that aren’t in the creative, you know, it’s like, it’s like you have a mental block.
Brent Warr And like, I think it’s important to also recognize that that’s okay. It’s okay to have days where you’re not grinding where you’re not grinding. You’re not pushing yourself. You’re not just to have rest. And to like, into like, sit in that I think is actually very powerful. So like, just sit and be like, okay, you know, I don’t have to be put pushing a product out. And I think something that I’m really in the process of learning, it’s a struggle for me to be honest is, you know, I’m, I’m very goal oriented. And even though I am a creative, I’m deaf, I’m very task oriented and I like to see results. And so when I don’t see results somewhat, immediately, that is convenient issue. So I’m working on that as well as, you know, like really celebrating goals are big goals that I’ve met. I have a tendency and I think a lot of people do of just, you know, hitting something like, like example, like for ICFF, like, that was a huge deal for me.
Brent Warr Like just even being involved in the show and, you know, I’m in the, we drove, by the way, we drove a U haul, 1200 miles with all my stuff in it, which is stupid. I should’ve just shipped it all. And we were, you know, we were on the way home and I was like, cool, like, what’s next? Rather than like sitting in it and realizing like, this was an amazing accomplishment and I should be proud of myself. I am trying to do a lot better of, of sitting in that and taking a day or two and be like, Hey, this is great. Sit in this and embrace it and own it. You know, it’s well, that’s,
Ashish Nathu And again, it’s such a good, you have, you’re so aware about your journey and I, and I really honor you for that because I don’t think I learned that for a decade after I started, but, you know, we, we attach ourselves so much to the result in the create. Like, you know, you’re a high achiever. You, you work really hard. You do a lot, you have a high expectation for yourself. Like for me, even, I had a story of like, I need to be productive in order to be loved. I need to be efficient in order to be enough. Like, I need to be doing more, doing more, doing more and to what end. Yeah. To what end. And so you could be endlessly creating endlessly building, but to what end. And so to be able to like step back and be present and enjoy the pro it’s really the journey.
Brent Warr It is. It is when, when you’re in the moment, you’re like, shut up. I don’t want to hear that. You know, it’s like, it’s like, it’s like, I know, but I don’t want to hear it. Let me just go, yeah, let me be my bubble. But yeah, it’s, it’s so important. And it’s something that I’m trying to, you know, to do better of, of, of being aware of. Yeah.
Ashish Nathu Yeah. It’s a really, it’s a really great lesson. What is your favorite part now? Like, do you feel like, I mean, you kind of mentioned this it’s whether, you know, you, now you have the luxury of being able to mix it all in one day, you could do a little bit of creating a little bit of selling. That’s so amazing. What are you working on now? Creatively, anything
Brent Warr Special? Yeah, I am. I’m, I’m really excited. So I there’s this brand new gallery in New York, that’s opening and I’m one of their called designers, 12 or 14 designers that are going to be in this gallery. And so I’m sending a couple pieces from my current collection up there, but I’m so excited. I’m doing this limited release collection of, of this brand new chaise lounge. I’m just going to be a limited release of like 12 pieces. And so I’m loving that cause it’s, it’s really giving me something creatively and it’s very different than some of my current work. And then actually finding out, I just met with a, with an art consultant in Atlanta and it’s, it’s, it’s actually really amazing. She has a, basically she has created her entire home into a gallery, which is, I have, it takes, makes sense. It takes AI.
Brent Warr It’s, it’s one of those things. It takes a lot to, for me to just to walk into a home and be like, oh my God, like it, like, it takes a lot for that to happen. And I, I walked in her home and I was like, oh, you have $4 million, $5 million of art in this home. Like it was one of those kinds of things. And I’m like, oh, I have never been in a place like this. And so she was amazing and was, was a mutual friend of a friend and she reached out and she was like, I want you to do a custom chandelier for my dining room. And so I’m in the process of, I just started funny enough. I had a meeting with her yesterday and I was like, I’m so excited. I’m gonna start prototyping stuff. And so that’s what I was in the studio until like 10 o’clock last night. So I, those are the two projects that I’m working on that I’m super, super excited about. There being, they’re both very different than my current existing work, which is it’s pushing me as an artist as well.
Ashish Nathu I love that. But as you think about what to do next and your journey in the future, what are you most afraid of? Oh,
Brent Warr Oh man. We want to get deep. We’re most afraid of, oh,
Ashish Nathu If you want to be surface off where you can go on another podcast,
Brent Warr I knew what I was getting myself into. What’s something that I am afraid of. Oh man. I, let me think on this for a minute, because I want to give you a, like a, like a legitimate answer. I don’t, I don’t, I’m not a bullshitter. Like I want to give you authenticity. I mean, if, if I, if we, if we’re being super honest, I, I think fear of failure, I think that’s, that’s one thing of like that I’m going to do X, Y, and Z and you know, not live up to the standard that I hold myself to. I think that’s big. I also, even though I say like, I, I don’t need other people’s opinions or approvals, like when it comes to my peers and the peers in the design community who I do want to impress, I think that’s, that’s a, that’s a fear of mine was like, am I making work that they will love that’s unique?
Brent Warr Am I making something that, or, and we’ll sell, you know, it’s like, and there’s this dichotomy, you know, as an artist and as it, and as a designer of like, okay, you know, you have your, your bread and butter, what do you go to? That’s going to pay your bills. But then what also do you have that is going to push you as an artist is going to push you as a person is going to push you to create something new and different. And I think it’s really important for anyone in the creative lane to have what they’re going to depend on for their livelihood, their income, to support their family, whatever that may be for them, but then also have a true outlet where they get to do what they want to like screw everybody else. You focus on what you want to do.
Brent Warr And I think when you get to that point of I’m focusing on what I want to do from, from any kind of creative background or any, any business, when you’re doing what you love, it may take some time, but people are gonna notice. And they were like, well, this is so different. This is unique. I am absolutely in love with this. And then you’re also gonna have people who hate it. And that’s even better is when you have people who like, hate your work and also love your work. That means, you know, you’re doing something right? Because you, you can’t, you can’t please everyone. And, you know, and that’s something that, you know, I, I I’m, you know, it’s like, I’m, I’m not everybody’s cup of tea. And I know that, you know, either you’re gonna love me or like, if you, if you don’t like me, it’s fine. Like, it’s, there’s, there’s a thousand other people who can give me approval. And my family loves me and the people are my close friends. Love me. I don’t need your approval. You know what I mean? So I think it’s, it’s, it’s important to have, yeah. To have to have that.
Ashish Nathu Oh, well, one of the things that showing up for me as you’re speaking is, you know, one of the being an entrepreneur is one of the most vulnerable experiences of somebody’s life. And you have to be incredibly brave and especially kind of what you’re talking about and all those entrepreneurs that I met in New York, like you guys are so young, you’re really putting your heart and soul into your business, in your product. And like you just said, you know, people may not like it people and they may, it may not buy it. You’re taking a huge amount of risk. You’re putting your personal name on the product, you’re making it with your hands. And there’s something very vulnerable and sincere and very noble about doing that work. But there’s a significant amount of financial and operating risk and fear of failure. I mean, fear failure is a high percentage probability in those stages of those businesses and you know, it, and you’re taking a ton of risk. And so I think that I really commend you for that because it is probably one of the most bravest things that people can do in their life. And you know, whether this is succeeds or doesn’t is, is honestly doesn’t matter because you’ll learn a crap ton from it and you’ll figure out what’s next and keep forward. And I think that’s the journey that you’re on. And, and so many others can learn from. So,
Brent Warr And I think so too, it’s like learning, I think it’s so important to learn how to, how to fail correctly. Like how learning, how to fail. I think that’s like so big. I mean, even I’ve only been, you know, doing this full-time or doing this for like a year and like I’ve had failures and like people not answer to me. And like for every a hundred emails you send out, like, you’re going to get maybe one, maybe two, you know, it’s like, you just have to learn how to deal with failure. Well, and, and to know, and also too is like, I think this is so important. I think a lot of people have amazing ideas in terms of starting companies or businesses or wanting to get into entrepreneurship. And they view, they think the barrier to entry is so high. Like I have to give up so much in, and at the end of the day, it’s like, okay, you failed. And what, like you, like, it’s my thing is like, I’m, you know, 24 by 25. And if, if I fail, okay, I’m in like a little debt, not much a little debt, like I’ll go live with my family for like a live with my parents for like a year, like worker work, a job, get out of debt. And I start over like, boom, you’re back, you’re back in the corporate world. You know what I mean?
Ashish Nathu I have to be wired a certain way to be able to think and live that way. Right.
Brent Warr No, and I, and like I said, going all the way back to the beginning of the podcast, I think it’s, it’s a lot about mindset. And I think it’s, it’s really important to like, even if it’s not every day, a couple of times a week sitting down and like thinking, even if it’s with some there’s, there’s some mornings I’m trying to be better about this of sitting, getting, like, I get my sketchbook and sometimes I’ll, I’ll just sit and I will sketch for 10 minutes. It doesn’t matter what it is. It could be crap. Most times it’s crap like it’s so, but just sitting down and, you know, getting into a mindset, doing it. And I think it’s, it’s creating good habits that will eventually pay off. Maybe not now, but in five, 10 years will pay off. You know? So
Ashish Nathu You know what? I am an M used to write rhythms and rhymes and lyrics, and he used to keep them in a shoe box for like two decades before he ever became famous. Yeah. It’s just about doing the work. Right. And so I, I, I love all of it. As we wrap up here, I want to ask you one final question. What does it mean to live a rich life?
Brent Warr I knew you were going to ask it. I was prepared, I think three things, three at three F’s fullness, freedom and finance. I think those were the three things that come to my fullness, being that I am able to one do what I love, be around the people I love and get fullness out of life. On a day in day out basis, going to finance, finance, allowing me to then become free financially, to be able to be in a mindset where I can create without constantly worrying money. When’s the next paycheck going to come so I can pay rent and then just freedom to, to create and to, to meet people and to really get in a, in a space where I’m not worried, you know, about if someone’s going to like X, Y, and Z. But I think it’s just so important to have to be in the mindset that if, if you’re financially free, you’re going to be so much, you’re going to have so much more freedom in what you do with the rest of your life.
Brent Warr And, you know, that’s, that’s a goal for me. I would love to eventually within the next, I would say 10 years to be at a point where I can be financially freedom or have financial freedom. So then I can really focus on creating, you know, and not. And so that’s, that’s a, that’s a goal of mine, whether that be, I’m still kind of figuring that out, whether that be into real estate or other, other different, you know, forms that’s that’s, you know what those three things I think are the three big things that, that how I view, what, what, what it looks like to be rich. I’m stumbling over my words.
Ashish Nathu Well, look, I, I, this was awesome. I really appreciate you doing this with me and just your story and your journey. Like, it just kissed me so jazzed, so excited. Like I get so excited to see other entrepreneurs take the risk, take the swing. You have such great insight. You’re so brave. I’m really just really proud of you, man. I congratulate you on being on your journey and yeah, I just you’re, you’re S you’re so blessed. So just lean into whatever, showing up for you and just enjoy the path, enjoy the journey. And I know people can learn so much from all of this content. So I really appreciate you being here with me today.
Brent Warr And I gotta, I gotta, I have a question for you. Oh yeah. It was you. Okay. So obviously since I’m like a newer, younger entrepreneur, I want to ask and I’m sure a lot of viewers will probably appreciate this. What’s one thing that you would have known or would have done at the beginning of your career that you wish you could go back and do or known or wish you one thing you wish you would’ve known either one,
Ashish Nathu Your mom. Well, what I’ll tell you to tell you this, what I want a few things that I did that I think served me really well. And then I’ll tell you what I wish I knew. Okay. So I’ll, I’ll, I’ll share some of the lessons that I feel like really did serve me. Well, number one was I feel, I feel like I said yes, a lot. Okay. And I think early on in your career, I think it’s very healthy to keep saying yes, as you learn and grow, you know, at some point you need to filter a little bit to drive efficiency because you can’t say yes to everything, but I think to have a yes, mindset allows things to show up for you in your life. The second thing is never make it about the money. Like always focus on value creation and adding value and providing value in creating products.
Ashish Nathu I think ultimately an Elon Musk talks about this all the time. It’s like the wealth will always go to the people who create and so focus on creating value for customers, your products, et cetera, and the business, the money and the business will grow. I think focusing on that unconditionally served me really, really well. I think one of the things I learned that I wish I knew, and I learned this way too late is, is not wrapping up your identity with your business because I think there’s a very far fall for that. When things go wrong or things get challenging and they always do, because everything is cyclical in the world, you get, it’s very difficult to detach yourself from the outcome and you cannot think objectively. And so being able to step away from your business objectively and look at it, you know, from 30,000 feet and not wrap up your, your identity and the success and the failure of your business, I think is one of the most painful things that I have ever had to go through.
Ashish Nathu And which is kind of why I asked you the question and, and again, at a young age, and you, you have a brand, you are, your, your brand is named after you. You’re very wrapped up in your brand. And so I think that all entrepreneurs have this challenge and the better we can work through this, I think we ebb and flow in and out of it, to be honest with you, it’s never like complete detachment, but the better we can operate in, and out of that framework of identity, we become better operators. We are healthier entrepreneurs and we can make better decisions for our business. And ultimately for our business succeed, people benefit. And I think where I see a lot of people fail and in our industry, a lot of people have failed because of this specifically is like your, your ego is wrapped up in your company.
Ashish Nathu It’s so much ego about it’s my businesses, me and my ego. And I gotta prove something to somebody. And that’s when everything goes wrong. And so that’s probably one of the things I wish I knew earlier on. And it would have been less painful for me. It probably would’ve made less students mistakes, right? Oh yeah. Yeah. Well, again, really excited for you. And I appreciate you doing this with me. Good question by the way. And maybe, maybe one day you’ll I can have you on the podcast and you can interview me the whole time, but it’d be great. Well, congratulations again. And, and we’ll talk soon, brother. Thank you so much for being on the show. Thanks so much.
Narrator Thank you for listening to the rich equation podcast with Ashish Nathu. Do you want more ideas on how to live rich? Go to richequationpodcast.com for show notes and resources. Then take one minute to leave a sheet, a five-star review on apple podcasts and we’ll see you.
