The Adam Feuerstein Podcast
Growth, AI, and wealth insights to fuel your rise to success.
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The Adam Feuerstein Podcast
Beyond Bankruptcy: How AI Empowers Entrepreneurs to Find Fulfillment | TSG Podcast
Ever feel like you're drowning in the entrepreneurial struggle, doubting if the dream is worth the fight?
Host Adam gets raw and real, sharing his own journey from bankruptcy to finding true fulfillment.
This isn't just another business talk; it's about the heart of the hustle.
Discover how success means more than money – it's freedom, pride, and purpose.
Adam reveals how AI is becoming the great equalizer, an empowering tool accessible even to those with nothing, offering a path to achieving your goals and finding that deep sense of accomplishment.
Hear the incredible story of how AI is helping a homeless man rewrite his future.
This episode explores the emotional core of entrepreneurship and how technology can fuel not just your business, but your fulfillment.
Tune in for a dose of powerful perspective.
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It almost never happens. We anticipate something and it turns out infinitely better than what we thought. Here's one of them. How many times in your life can you actually count where things turned out to be far sweeter than you thought they would be 25 years of being an entrepreneur, I've learned a lot about how things feel when you go through highs and lows. It's not that your entire life is defined by what you do, but it is a huge part of who you are as a person. It doesn't define you, but it is a huge part.
Speaker 1:Maybe you feel the same way that struggle, the trying to constantly get to the next step, looking to other people, comparing yourself. Man, that guy must have it figured out, that girl must have it figured out. Why don't I have it figured out? What do I need to do? What is this combination it? Why don't I have it figured out? What do I need to do? What is this combination? It?
Speaker 1:Can be overwhelming and, flat out, feel hopeless. From time to time I felt that. I felt that in my first business, getting it going all the way through to the end, we're in it in a bankruptcy trial or bankruptcy hearing and our federal bankruptcy system. I understand that gauntlet of emotions. I'm wondering how many of you have felt something similar or maybe even the exact same way, that feeling where, every day, we've made a commitment to something that we don't fully understand and we're trying to get through it. We don't want to disappoint the people around us. We don't want to have to tell those we care about or that we're trying to provide for that maybe this isn't going to work, or maybe that we invested money or time that we're deeply, deeply feeling regretful about because we doubt the outcome is going to be what we wanted it to be. We doubt the outcome is going to be the, or rather fulfill, the reason why we took the leap in the beginning. There's highs and lows every day in life. You don't have to be an entrepreneur to understand that, that's for sure. But as entrepreneurs, it's inevitable that we're going to run into these things. We're going to have to experience these emotions of thrill, right, absolute thrill, excitement, joy, pride, defeat, overconfidence, underconfidence, all trying to find the same thing success.
Speaker 1:What is success? My definition is freedom and fulfillment. It's easy to measure monetarily, right. It's easy to measure with money. I made $10 million last year. I made $100. Last year. I made a billion dollars, whatever scale it is you're playing on. That's easy.
Speaker 1:There's other ways of creating victory, too. We discuss that all the time. I made a social impact, I made a sacrifice that led to making somebody else or a group of people or a lot of people's lives better. Whatever that is, it doesn't have to be financial.
Speaker 1:I can tell you, at this stage in my life, I have created a place for my own self in entrepreneurialism where I absolutely do care about profitability, but I care less about it now than I did before, and that opens up an opportunity for me to truly share and connect with the people that I want to reach out to, that reverberate with this message, who are in the struggle of entrepreneurialism, who are in the pursuit of their dreams, their goals, who want that feeling confidence, joy, prosperity, pride feeling and I know this especially as a man hoping that next week my wife will come on and speak to this from the feminine perspective but definitely as a man that I provided for my family today from something that I created from nothing like that sense of absolute fulfillment. I wish that for every person in my life who has this pursuit. I wish that for every person hearing this Losers want you to lose. Winners want you to win and I want everybody hearing this to be on the path to winning, if you're not there already right now. The reason that I want that is because, from bankruptcy court to what I define as being quite successful not all the way there yet, but I have been so far in my own life and that feeling that you get, looking out over your family, your loved ones, your friends, knowing that you've provided something, whatever that is. Maybe it's just a nice place for them to come through, or maybe you snuck your credit card to the waiter and make sure that you covered everybody at an expensive dinner. Whatever that looks like to you, it's very powerful and it doesn't happen all the time and it takes a ridiculous amount of work to get there.
Speaker 1:Part of that work is dealing with how we feel about things, our perception. Is this good, is it bad? Is this winning? Is this losing? Are we closer to our goal? Are we further from our goal? Why does it look like? Everybody else has it figured out and I don't. If I had any way of counting how many times I felt that way in my life, I can't even imagine the number. It's what drives me to want to do this work. It's what drives the services that we provide at TSG. It's the whole purpose here.
Speaker 1:I want to walk as many people into that light, into that light of victory, of success, however they define it individually. It's not up to me to tell you how to be successful. It's not up to me to tell you how to feel or what it will feel like for you. All I know is in my own life, what those struggles have felt like, what the failures have felt like and what the failures have felt like and what the victories have felt like. And I can tell you, for all the energy that we sometimes think is lost in a failure, it comes back a hundredfold in an instant, as soon as we make victory, as soon as we champion that next goal and the truth is there's always a next goal right. There's always some other place. We want to get to, some thing we're striving for and we want to never let go of that. That's what the adventure is based on, and I invite you to think that way.
Speaker 1:Not only is entrepreneurialism an adventure perhaps the grandest professional adventure one can take, in my opinion anyway but also the adventure of this incredible technology that we now have as entrepreneurs to support us. And it's 24-7. It's not tired, it doesn't stop thinking, it doesn't shut down, it doesn't tell you to wait, it doesn't remind you how unimportant you are to it. And that is, as you all know, is AI. Is AI in and of itself a romantic thing? Is it a romantic idea? Is it a romantic practice? No, it's not. It's another computer interface, right, ones and zeros and plastic screens. But what it represents as a tool, a tool to champion our dreams and our goals, and therefore how it helps us to that feeling, to that feeling of mastering our universe, mastering our purpose, if only temporarily or only in part, it doesn't matter. We take the wins where we can get them and why it makes me so passionate has nothing to do with ones and zeros or plastic screens. It has everything to do with the human experience and how it furthers that along, how this can accelerate us closer to our goals.
Speaker 1:How I see people who are suffering, and suffering is it's a huge part in my life the witnessing of human suffering and that longing inside to do something about it. And I don't mean, you know, hand things out. I don't believe in giving things away necessarily. I think sometimes that leads to enablement on certain people in certain situations. What I believe in is empowerment.
Speaker 1:I've told the story before the homeless guy that I met outside of Starbucks writing a book called. That he said was about actually I don't know the title, but it was about United States Constitution as a social contract in contemporary America. I asked a homeless man who happened to have a laptop, what's with the laptop? And that was his response I'm writing a book about the United States Constitution as a social contract in contemporary American society. How many people would walk up to a homeless man on the side of a building in downtown and anticipate that response? Imagine, imagine his suffering, being homeless. Whatever led to that, I have no idea. I know we're all a summation of our choices, but it doesn't make life any easier for him than it does for me in that situation. And then imagine seeing him Having God literally grab you by the chest and drag you in front of him, asking him what's with the laptop, and having that response.
Speaker 1:What I took from that is this incredible sense of purpose. I think that's one thing we all have in common, whether we're having a good day, a bad day, whether we're ahead of the curve or getting run over by it. It's that sense of purpose that's usually at the heart of every one of us who are entrepreneurs. I feel a calling, I feel that I have a purpose, I feel there's something out there for me to fulfill that other people need or want, and it speaks to our purpose. Imagine that A man with no food, no access to water, has a broken laptop and is well on his way to writing an epic publication, an epic book, because of chat GPT. What I took away from that is this technology discriminates from nobody and right now it's ours, and our aim is to make sure that it stays that way forever. And by ours I mean all the people, from the wealthiest to the gentleman sleeping under a bridge.
Speaker 1:Tonight it's opportunity. A gentleman told me he asked Chad GPT what he can do to go from being a homeless man to a wealthy citizen in the city of Denver. He said that book was step three. That's an emotional story for me, because I can't describe the irony and I can't describe how it moved me into this path, into this work, and how my fulfillment that I'm chasing, my joy that I'm chasing, is wanting to spread that opportunity, spread the awareness of that opportunity to everybody willing to hear it.
Speaker 1:Not for the sake of wealth, if that's your goal perfect. Not judging that at all. Not for the sake of social impact If that's your goal perfect, no judgment. But that feeling of fulfillment, of joy, of satisfaction, of being empowered, the relief of suffering, the relief from struggle. I can't do it for you, nor would it serve you if I could, but with this tool, ai in any form, whether in an application, a creator application, a large language model, interface, however, with that now at our fingertips, that feeling, that sense of victory, of accomplishment, of fulfillment, that sense of being a man from my perspective, is now accessible by everybody, including a homeless man on the side of Starbucks with a broken laptop. Imagine going from a situation like that, which is likely far worse than yours if you're listening to this today, to being wealthy. Go from having to scramble for every bit of resource food, water, clean air to absolute prosperity.
Speaker 1:I don't know why God created me born in this country, the United States of America, but I know one thing I know that we are given the right to pursue happiness in this great country. I know the rest of the rights that we're given are in support of that pursuit. I don't know why I'm blessed to live here. I don't know why God put me here, but if that's not the American dream and this technology isn't the largest boost to our ability to not only pursue happiness but to champion it, I don't know what it is. Whether you live in the United States or elsewhere, this technology and this opportunity to feel, to experience this kind of fulfillment and joy is yours all the same. In fact, that's one of its biggest resources. The information that this technology represents and that can deliver to you in your pursuit of your dreams and your pursuit of happiness is collective human wisdom, and it's done without borders. Think about tapping in to a collective intelligence, into a collective database of human wisdom, without borders, without time. How does that speak to your goal? How would that embolden you and empower you in your pursuit of that goal?
Speaker 1:My first business I had a mentor. He's an amazing person, but I had one very successful man. I wanted nothing more than to make him proud of the work that we ended up doing. It didn't end up going that way, and instead I learned an incredible lesson in humility, which I later realized to be one of the most important lessons of my entire life. You see, I thought it was disaster and failure, and the truth was it was absolutely necessary and without it I wouldn't be where I am today, and for that reason I am grateful. But I had one. Today we can access the collective intelligence and wisdom of millions If you're committed to a cause, if you're committed to your success.
Speaker 1:What an incredible utility to have at your fingertips. What a thing to have in pursuit of your dreams. What a thing to have as you pursue happiness, whether in America or elsewhere, and, if you happen to be blessed to live in this country, what a way to fulfill that guarantee. What a way to exercise that freedom that you're given as a United States citizen to pursue. What a time to be alive. What a time to dream larger than ever before. What a time to be in pursuit of your happiness and your goals.
Speaker 1:So what are we talking about today? Confidence, joy, pride, fulfillment, basic but powerful human emotions. Think of a time in your own life, whether in your pursuits of entrepreneurship, or professional pursuits, or family pursuits, personal pursuits, whatever. Think of a time when you felt confidence. Think of a time when you took a risk, you championed the outcome of that risk and you walked standing tall with your head held high. Think how that led to joy, the joy we feel If, for no other reason than we relieved ourselves of some stress, we've made it through a struggle and, if nothing else, created a little bit of breathing room, a chance to reload for the next round. Maybe that next round is going to last another day, a week or the rest of our lives.
Speaker 1:Joy, the opportunity to feel joy, pride I don't mean being arrogant or egotistical the kind of pride that a father feels when he opens the door to a warm, safe house filled with everything his children need when they come running in the door. The sense of pride when somebody calls and needs something and you can provide whatever it is that that person needs. How proud we feel when we've created that from nothing. All these things together lead to fulfillment. Fulfillment, feeling fulfilled as a person, even if only for a few moments, if not the rest of our life Fulfilled. I started something I set out to champion, a goal fulfilled. I started something I set out to champion, a goal. I made it and I am fulfilled. I'm confident, I feel joy. I'm proud of the work that I've done, the way I've served other people, the way I've contributed to the human family and I am now fulfilled Again usually only temporarily, but fulfilled nonetheless.
Speaker 1:There's been times in all of our lives where these things have come together. When we reflect on that, we may think that's from chance. Perhaps it was, but not likely Generally. There's something driving us, driving those around us, driving an opportunity into our purview, giving us the chance to jump on board, to do something, to create our life in a direction we've always wanted it to go. My wife and I mentor several small businesses and I love these people. These people are our brothers and they are our sisters, and as long as they're driving, we will drive alongside them until they get all the way to where they want to go. And it's amazing to see, having mentored for 25 years, how much quicker, how fast people can go from a dream or a concept or a written intention to bring that into fruition.
Speaker 1:It's amazing to see something that sounds as boring, as soulless as using AI in these young people's businesses to automate emails, but then see the effect. So that's the cause. The cause is eliminate redundant tasks. Okay, that sounds exciting. Is there a lot of soul in that? It doesn't appear to until you realize or until you witness these people using this technology to automate those emails and saving themselves 30 minutes a day, an hour a day, by Friday, at the time the whistle blows. That's five hours in that week. And what have they done with that five hours? It never changes. It's the same thing every time. That five hours goes in some way towards enriching their service to others, whether that's through their business or through their social ideologies or whatever it is that they're working on.
Speaker 1:That doesn't convert into naps, it doesn't convert to apathy, it doesn't convert to silliness. It converts to a richer contribution to others. You see, that's the effect. That's the part that I cringe when I hear these fear mongers talking about this technology. It's bullshit. The truth of the matter is people are largely benevolent. There's evil in the world, there's bad people. Of course we're not naive, but far and large, our creator has created people for the sake of their benevolence.
Speaker 1:And so when you give those people spare time, free time, when you relieve them in that time of suffering, of struggle, of worry, doubt, anxiety, the things that hold us back, how do they respond? They respond through richer contribution to others. They make phone calls to people they haven't seen in a long time. They surprise their moms with calling home and letting them know that their life is going really, really well. They take that time to make new friends, forge new paths.
Speaker 1:I'm 48 years old and there's few things in life that bring me more joy at this point outside of the success of my entrepreneurial pursuits, but on a personal level than making new friends. I met a new friend last Wednesday Number one. That's a hard thing to do. Men struggle with that, certainly 48 year old men, certainly people in our situation here, where we're largely leaders in our communities. But it happens you meet people that don't give a shit what you do, don't care what house you live in, your money whether that's a ton of money or no money they're just happy you showed up tonight.
Speaker 1:That's what we can do with this time. That's how we go from AI automating emails, ai providing direction, ai writing scripts for podcasts, ai giving us information on things that otherwise we'd have to seek out a mentor and spend hours and hours and hours trying to pursue. When it comes to us instantly, we take that and we turn that empowering, really honestly, kind of a convenience right, super big time saver into opportunities in our life. Because what do we all have. We all have the same thing. We're either the richest man in the world or the poorest man in the world, the oldest man in the world or the newborn. You have 24 hours in a day. The biggest decisions we make has nothing to do with money, has everything to do with how we spend that 24 hours. And every day it starts again. Every day we get an opportunity to do it better, differently or worse than we did yesterday. And when we're given that time, our options expand.
Speaker 1:It's not just a to-do list today, it's not another 500 emails that you got from your marketing campaign. It's not customer service. It's allowing this technology, in the absolute, sterilized way that we sometimes can perceive it, to behave and realize. That's the cause. The reaction is that we have time. We can leverage those 24 hours to contribute greater to others. That's the romance, that's the human element in this technology. When the fear mongers come, tell you to be afraid, to hide, ai is going to take your job. We've made fun of them recently on some of our content.
Speaker 1:Think what a benevolent person does. Think what your best friend does. Think what you can do when you're given that opportunity. Think what you can do when you no longer have to seek a single mentor or a group of mentors and spend all that time developing those relationships, all that when you can go straight to the largest collection of that same wisdom and experience it for yourself and experience it almost instantaneously how much further you can go. It doesn't mean you don't pursue a connection with a mentor. What it means is you have more time to pursue the right connection to that mentor, to the right person, to building that network, to sharing your connection, your contribution, your benevolence with as many people as humanly possible.
Speaker 1:Maybe that means you knock off early and go home and crawl up on the couch with your wife and hold her while she watches that movie she's been bugging you for a year to watch that you don't think you can stand. But today, because you feel fulfilled, because you're proud of yourself for creating the opportunity to come home at two o'clock in the afternoon, at three o'clock in the afternoon, wrap up on the couch, hold her tight and watch the movie. You've created that for yourself. You've created the opportunity to do that. What would that feel like? You show up at your kid's school, walk right in the classroom unannounced just to tell them you love them and you're proud of them for doing a good job today. What would that feel like? There is not a thing on this earth. There is not a lack of anything resource, time, intelligence, opportunity, whatever that holds you back from that? Not anymore.
Speaker 1:My friend can write a complex book based on her social experiment in contemporary American society while living homeless. What's your excuse? What's holding you back? The air conditioner worked too good in your house, too many options to choose from on streaming services. You'll get to that next week, tomorrow, maybe someday.
Speaker 1:I say you call bullshit on yourself. I say you look in the mirror and realize you're living in times where things have never been so easy. We're an opportunity to champion what you want in your life your contribution, your fulfillment, your pride, your joy, your freedom. Your pursuit of happiness has never been closer than it is right now. Today, the question is do you have the courage to step into it? Do you have the courage to take the risk? There's a million excuses I don't have the money, I don't have the time, kids are in soccer, can't miss a football game. Wifey's working overtime trying to help me pay the mortgage. Those 24 hours in a day that we each share. They come and they go, and when they go, there's no getting them back. There is no way for that to return. Every day that you don't take action, every day you don't take that step, every day you continue to dream and not do, is a day lost to history that you will never get another chance to regain. The time is now, Only now. It's too late. Tomorrow. It's overwhelming too. I know it's a lot. What do you mean? I just quit my job tomorrow and go after it.
Speaker 1:I'd put a plan together first. I'd consult this collective wisdom. Frankly, the first thing I would do is I'd sign up for a TST class. Shameless as that sounds, the bottom line is it's a great place to start. You can sign up for some free information, you can sign up for classes. That's what we're here to do. That's what we're here to help you do. It's not expensive and it could change your life and it just might give you the confidence you need to take the next step, because this is in your future.
Speaker 1:What I'm talking about, that kind of prosperity, that kind of pursuit of happiness, absolutely attainable, in fact, more so now than it ever has been before. So I dare you to take the first step. Reach out. Sign up for your TST class. Download those tools, put them to work. Sign up for your TSG class. Download those tools, put them to work, get to work and champion your goals and I'll meet you where joy and confidence and pride and fulfillment live on the other side and we can celebrate. Thank you for joining me. I'm Adam Fierstein. This is the TSG Podcast. I invite you to join us. Check out our website at totalsomegamecom and we invite you along in this journey. We invite you to join us. Check out our website at totalsomegamecom and we invite you along in this journey. We invite you to click the buttons, go through the funnel, attain the knowledge and champion your goals and share it with us. When you do, we'll be here, thank you.