All right. So we are started. Hello everyone. Welcome to 1000 gurus hosted by me, J.R. Yonocruz. Uh, it is my mission to interview some of the most interesting and inspiring people out there, hear their stories and try to distill some of their life lessons and insights so that hopefully you, the audience can learn from it, applying your own life and help you achieve whatever goals you have, whether that be success, happiness, love, et cetera.

Uh, so with me, I have my good friend, Rani Bungay. Um, I will read his, yay. He deserves it. Um, yeah, so I'll read his, his bio, his intro. So Rani is a managing partner of Oni Ventures. He's a serial entrepreneur who jumped from accounting to underwriting and has made his way to private wealth management and is now running businesses.

Some of which include a mass company, real estate investments and management and auto management. And he's now getting into software engineering in New York early soon. He also deadlifts 750 pounds dry likes long, long walks in the park in the dark by himself. Um, he's a food enthusiast, but only when other people invite him out.

Um, and he's just there for the vibes. And he always goes full out, never marks. So for dancers, if you know, you know. Um, and uh, he loves when you tell jokes about him to strangers, apparently. So, it's one of his things. I need to hire the chat GPT that you, uh, use too. Yeah, yeah, it's very good, yeah. Um, so yeah, so, uh, I wanted to start off with a video that we, uh, both created together.

Um, a little, yeah, a little bit. Um, we had this really stupid idea to make a dance video, um, based on One Direction that we both liked. And it was during finals week in like the uh, study lounges area. Um, while everyone else was studying for finals, I was a senior. Rani, you were like third year, second year?

I was a sophomore year and I also had an ankle sprain if you remember that. An ankle sprain, yeah, yeah, that's right. And so instead of studying, what we did is we made this stupid video and it took, must, must have edited, I edited like 16 hours straight just editing it. Um, but yeah, here's a little snippet of it.

Oh yeah. Ka, ka, ka, you're 

insecure, ta, ta, ta, don't know what for, 

heads walk through the door. Don't need makeup to cover up the way that you are. It's enough. Yeah, that's validation. Everyone else in the room can 

see. I couldn't spin. My ankle was broken. Oh yeah. 

Like, yeah. And then it gets worse from 

there.

The one where I'm like nobody else could. Yeah. 

Definitely went viral. No, it didn't. Okay, that's enough. That's enough. Thanks, Solomon. Yes. Um, so yeah. So anyways, so Hey, in my defense, it would have gotten viral today. Yeah, it definitely would have gotten TikTok viral. Um, so anyways, so yeah. We know each other from dance, right?

We were on the same dance team. We both went to UCI. Um, and, uh, I don't know if I want to go into the story, but it was like, I think, I don't know, I think from the very beginning, I feel like we vibed really well, like, uh, my first impression of Rani, we were in a circle for our dance team, and I remember I was just interrupting and being stupid and like telling dumb jokes, and then I had just met Rani, And, um, I remember he was laughing at all my jokes.

He was just sitting next to me. I was like, oh, this guy's kind of cool. Like, he thinks I'm funny. Um, so I was like, okay, I think we're gonna be friends for a while. I 

just wanted to be accepted. Or he just wanted to be kind. 

Yeah. 

No, I 

And he's Filipino, so I was like, okay, maybe we have something in common.

There you go. No, I genuinely thought your jokes were really funny, and that's why it was actually kind of funny that no one else was laughing at them. Yeah, that's why I was like It made it even more funny for me. 

So yeah, so that's how we know each other. Um, and yeah, so I think a lot of the, what we're going to talk about is entrepreneurship.

Um, you've had your own entrepreneurial journey, which, you know, I've been following since then, and I, you know, really respect your journey and it's, I think it could be very helpful for the audience to hear from. Um, and, uh, so I know when we talked, so you were born in the Philippines, right? And you came over when you were nine.

And then I think the, the, the expected career path was, you know, to be risk averse and like, like most Asian households, like get a job, get a good job, make money, be secure and whatnot. Um, and then you found yourself into entrepreneurship. So, um, I don't know if you want to walk us through like how you got from there to here.

Yeah, absolutely. Uh, yeah, I. Can't agree anymore. I think being a first gen here There's this sort of expectation for you to be able to you know, carry yourself with the opportunities that we were given here I went to UCI Once I graduated I immediately moved away from my family and went all the way to San Francisco and started my accounting job Which my parents wanted for me So I found out very quickly that, you know, that was not the path that I wanted to take.

Uh, I had a very long conversation with my parents afterwards saying like, Hey, I need to find my own path. Um, ended up starting in like specifically finance and underwriting moved into private wealth management. And that really opened the doors for me to like, realize that the people that make more or make the most out of themselves and the true understanding of, you know, what it means to take in the opportunity is to go through.

Your entrepreneurship journey. And so from there, I know been in several cities and states and moved away. And now I'm going to be going to New York afterwards. Nice. 

Yeah, that's exciting. I know, like I mentioned in the bio that you're planning on going into like software development, software engineering.

Um, so like what, I guess, what was some of the major influences that kind of led you to this journey? I mean, like. Was it just, or like what deterred you from that current trajectory that you had going out of college? Like what were those factors? Cause I think um, from the perspective of maybe the audience or maybe like people watching this, it's like okay, I'm either in a career or I'm in college or I'm in high school and like I don't know what to do, like where to go, um, what career path to choose.

So then how did you go from that into like this? 

Yeah, I think for me, uh, in terms of the transition first into going into an entrepreneurship journey, uh, I think it really just matters on the environment that you're in. Um, I moved again, like my family's like based in Southern California and we move, or I personally moved to San Francisco where, uh, at least during that time, there was a lot of serial entrepreneurs like myself, but they were all getting into tech and a lot of things were blowing up, right?

This was in the peak season of when. Like Airbnb started making its way, the Ubers, the Lyfts, and just innovation in general was skyrocketing during that time. And I knew that I wanted to feel some sort of success from there, but I also knew that at least my path then. Was specifically in finance. So I looked for, you know, like that's when I really took a look hard at myself and, and see what my journey is there.

That led me to going into private wealth, where now I was managing, you know, multimillion dollar, uh, clients. And saw that we saw where their investments were and how they protected their investments and which type of opportunities they were. Uh, investing on essentially. That's when I realized I need to be on that side as opposed to just the person man managing it.

And that's how, uh, I came to be. 

Right. So then it seems like the goal was always to get to that point where you could like make more money, um, right? And so, so it's like to make more money, right? Yes. So what, what is that? 

Hmm. 

I'm from the question like, okay, obviously people want to make more money, right?

Yeah. Like, so what does it mean for you to make more money? Like everyone wants more money, but then what makes you decide that? Okay. I see that these people who are rich or financially well off, they're doing this, so I should go in that direction, right? Um, so like, I guess, what makes you pursue what you do now, like that pursuit of money?

Yeah, absolutely. I think it was really just taking good, look hearted Like myself, I was putting in like when you're in private wealth management and you're managing other people's, uh, money, you're still putting in 60, 70 hour weeks, uh, at the same time, those 68, 70 hour weeks that you're, you're putting in is essentially for someone else that's above you.

That's also gaining all those. Um, I took a good hearted look at myself. I knew exactly what I was making. I also knew that it wasn't necessarily like enough. And I knew that if I had the persistence that I wanted to do, I was able to put in those 70 hours, 60, 70 hours that I would have done for somebody else anyways, and invest in myself and, and, and, and reap the rewards from there.

I think that's what it came down to. 

That makes sense. So then, so I get that you. The goal was to was to make money or make more money, but why 

yeah, I think Fundamentally, you know, I think being in an Asian culture like I wanted to you know I have this ideal lifestyle of not only being able to like work for myself, but also You know take care of my family Take care of my not only my current family, but my future family as well.

I think that The grind that like, at a very young age where you're unencumbered, you're very risk averse, and all of those things just naturally matched up to me wanting to be able to take a risk on myself, um, in, in that, so that I can, you know, again, hope, uh, for the best and, and really, um, you know, give back to the family that I, that I currently have as well as, you know.

In the future with my own family as well. 

So it's like that financial freedom, um, providing for your family, having like the ability to do what you want, things like that, and then to provide for them. Um, so then how did you, like, with the businesses and the career that you're, trajectory that you're going on Like, how did that come into your life?

Like, Google search, like, how to make more money. Or like, Instagram video, you can be a millionaire. Like, how did, how did those ideas of what you do now, like, wealth man or when you do wealth management, real estate, the, the, your companies and all this stuff. Like, how did that enter your, like, your vision?

Absolutely. I think, uh, have you ever heard of the red car theory that a lot of people were recently talking about? Red 

car theory? 

Yes. 

Um, is it a theory of cars that are red? Yes. 

I'm 

just kidding. 

Yeah, so the premise of it is that when someone asks you throughout the day, like, Oh, how many red cars have you seen when you're driving in the road?

You're like, Oh, I don't know. Probably like five. Like, whatever. You won't really know. But if someone told you, Hey, I'm going to give you a dollar for every single red car that you drive. Um, that you see for the day, at the end of the day, you're gonna know exactly and keep count of which one, um, of how many cars there are, because you want to make that money.

Is this 

incentivized? 

Yeah, you're incentivized. So for me, my incentivize is, hey, I want to pursue this. Naturally, like when you're looking at the, naturally you come up across and like, look to the right place and put yourself in an environment where you're going to be able to see those, those things. And I think for me specifically, I had, uh, I was surrounded by people that were also driven, um, for financial freedom for themselves.

And that's when, you know, collectively, when you, when you put multiple brains together, um, you, you get to then find out like from sources as well. 

Okay. So you're saying that. You had this idea of, well, it's okay. So the goal was to like, you know, make more money and, and, you know, have a business or like work for yourself.

So then you put yourself around those people and then being around those people expose you to those like industries, those businesses and whatnot. 

Industries and the opportunities that come from, uh, come from there as well. 

Okay. Okay. That makes sense. So I guess, um, going off of that, then if you're talking about like, so it led you're You got to that, that path because you had a goal and then you're like, okay, let me figure out how to get there.

And then you surround yourself with the right people. Do you have any other like takeaways or like strategies or mindsets or like best practices that helped you get to there? Cause I'm sure there are other people who want to be successful. They want to make money. Right. And that's, that's also your journey.

So what advice would you give in that sense? 

I think, so first off is again, it's really just putting yourself in this mindset that that's where you want to be when, when that happens, I truly think that there's going to be opportunities, whether or not you never thought of it as an opportunity come before, it's going to pop up when you think about, like, for example, innovation and when you're continuously thinking like, oh, I want to create a new idea.

Like everything can, can, can come up from there. Like for example, like this mic, like, Oh, like I want something to create something new. You're, you're, you're essentially tweaking your mindset to being like, Oh, maybe that there's a way to, for this to go higher or like lower. And then that's, that sparks the idea from there.

On questioning like, Oh, how can I make money out of this? Right. Um, fortunately for me, when I was in like private wealth, I think naturally because of my business, my job industry, it forced, um, me to find investments. Uh, for our clients that are all entrepreneurs that are doing essentially same thing, something as me, they've, they found something and they're looking to get funded.

And then that's when you realize like, wow, there's, there's just really this. new opportunity or door to, to be able to go from, from there. Right. Um, and so, yeah, I think that that's my, my advice, uh, I would say in terms of people that are like looking into getting into entrepreneurship is like, I honestly, part of it is like read, but also like expand your horizons.

The more you're able to expand your horizons, the more opportunities you're just going to set in play. And the better the mindset you have, the more persistent you're going to be. 

Okay. So it seems like, um, correct me if I'm wrong, it's you. Keeping your eyes open for the opportunities that are around there, right?

Because if you have a goal, then naturally you're going to be exposed to those different opportunities. And in your case, you were exposed to like these entrepreneurs who are trying to get funded. Um, but more importantly than that, it's that you were open to it and you were looking for those opportunities.

And that's how they, they come to you. Exactly. Right. That makes sense. Um, okay. So like, I guess on the topic of entrepreneurship, Um, we have like a few topics we discussed before, but it's like there's a few questions and I guess we can tackle this however you want, but the big questions are like, what does it take to be an entrepreneur?

Is it worth it? Uh, like lifestyle, like, is it worth the sacrifice and hard work? And then what should people know before plugging in? So any of those? 

Yeah, absolutely. Uh, I'm just going to start from like how my background works. I started my entrepreneurship journey in February of 2020. Uh, for those great 

timing.

Yeah, it was, it was an absolute great timing. This is me clearly like not knowing exactly, uh, how the times were going to be afterwards. But I also knew that like that was, that was my time to be able to do it and dive into it. Fast forward, you know, I wouldn't say that I necessarily had like the up and up path that people get when they were in 2017, 2018 doing real estate.

Because that's really when things really started. grew until every, like the entire world was put into a pause. 

So it was real estate was the first thing you went from wealth management to real estate to real estate. Yes, that's correct. 

Um, and so, you know, what do you do in a world that's essentially put at a pause where you can't really do anything, especially like being in California, well, you look at other shops and you learn how to be able to pivot.

And that's exactly what I did. I think one of the things that. is a very big lesson for me that I had to learn, um, on the spot essentially is fail fast, pivot faster. It's the idea that you are, you know, when, when you're, when you're failing at things, it doesn't mean that it's, there's always going to be a lesson innately from there.

And when you've just gathered all that information and get yourself back up to looking into different sources, like that's, that's how you become persistent. And I think that's one of the things that like no one really teaches you until you're actually like in the trenches in the trenches. No one teaches you that there's a lot of fails.

I mean, everyone could easily quote that like, you know, every with every one successful like business, there's like thousands and thousands that are like buried deep that like tragically failed. And that's okay. Because in order for you, someone to be able to get to that point, they needed to try and pivot multiple times.

Um, and I didn't understand that or I didn't fully understand that. Embrace that until I actually got into it, I would say. 

Right. So it's like, there's a, there's a persistence aspect there. There's like a flexibility of pivoting and whatnot and kind of adjusting. Um, to that aspect. And then, um, yeah, so like, so that's what it takes.

Or like, what you're saying, is it worth it? Like, what are the sacrifices you need to make? Or like, anything else that people need to know before going in? 

Yep. So, what does it take? Uh, it takes a lot. And I think There, there's, like, you know, we, we see nowadays, uh, on, on YouTube, or everyone like, you know, trying out new different aspects of things.

But that's because of the fact that, That wasn't their first, like, startup. Their successfulness comes from a continuous, like, persistence, and there's going to be downtimes. Um, if I was to recommend something that I read even prior to going into, uh, this journey was, like, the whole 80 20 principle. Right?

Where you realize that, like, there's a lot of things that, when you're an entrepreneur, there's a lot of 80 percent things that you have to do. No matter what, even if it only moves the needle by 20%, but you have to do it, especially if you're starting off, especially if you're bootstrapping, especially if you're just funding, self funding yourself and not having to, uh, raise for it.

But then once you deal with that 80%, that's needed, you get to that 20 percent as well. That's going to move everything else on top of that. Not like that's, that's, that's, that's really what it takes. It's not only like fundamentally understanding that that's work, but also mentally. understanding that that's how it's going to be able to move the needle when you're coming in.

Mm, that makes sense. There's a lot of hard work that goes into it, of course, but just being prepared for that, that it's very unexpected and there's a lot of twists and turns. And I'm sure it's like industry specific too, but I think the mentality is the thing that's kind of universal, right? That you would say.

Yeah, I think it, I, a lot of people, like there's, there's also like another word for like one, one, one entrepreneurs, right? And these are the people that are like, oh, they try once. Then it didn't end up working, and they're like, all right. You know, like, I'm, I'm done. I give up. I think when you look at the successful entrepreneurs now, at least the people that you're able to like visually, like look up to and see, like we all see like all the glamor that that comes with it, but we don't see all the failures that they've built in order to get to that point.

Yeah. Just the, the jets and the Lambos. Just the Jets, 

the Lambos that, I mean, because that's what everyone wants to see. Everyone wants to see somebody like that's already successful. They don't wanna see like all the times that like you failed because it's. At the end of the day, like, that's when you've truly realized the actual amount of work that needs to get put in.

Um, and that's what I, like, that's what I wanted to learn. I think one of the things that, uh, one of the questions you also asked was, um, is it worth it? Is it worth my time? I think if you have the same pursuit as someone who wants to be financially free, uh, as someone who, uh, Wants to be able to ultimately control, like, their own life.

It's going to be worth, but there's, like, there is that innate sacrifice that comes in it. And frankly, there's times where you could go about it smartly. I know that there's a lot of pitfalls that I had to experience myself that You know, right now I could clearly advise, like, not to do, essentially. 

Right.

But yeah. That's a great segue, because I was going to ask, like, favorite failures. Well, we have a, we have some topics of, like, uh, great stories, right? I was asking if you have any good stories, um, and we have a few points. So good, great stories and or favorite failures. So we have a few, um, so we have Idaho, mask, and fall.

Yeah. Anyone's want to, you know, 

Yeah, uh, we'll start off and I don't, I mean, again, I think this was, this was peak, uh, February 2020. I said, Hey, I'm going to start my own business. I quit. I'm like, thank you so much. I had a great opportunity and I love the company, but I was like, I need to be able to set myself in.

And really dive into this myself. Fortunately, I was, uh, able to find a managing partner with me, uh, to, to co manage and start my entrepreneurship journey. And next thing you know, the entire world was put into a pause. So then what do we do when California decides like hey, we're, you can't even travel outside, everyone go inside, and everyone go, well, we gotta look for other opportunities out there.

And so then in the middle, probably, uh, just before 4th of July, was me bringing one, uh, Luggage one backpack, uh, and making our way and driving all the way to Idaho to set up shops that we could start doing investments there because things weren't, you know, at least at that point a little bit more leeway and not stopping.

Um, so yeah, that was 

because it was a little bit more lenient in terms of like the real estate exactly, 

or there were still things that were flowing in, uh, that, that, that was, that was able to go, uh, and yeah, and, and really like looking up there. Well, uh, during this time, things were still on pause. And like, yes, there were like, there were, there were, there were deal flows that are coming in, but also, um, again, this is a segue or a recall back from our conversation where sometimes when you put yourself in a position where you are surrounded by people that.

are also like minded as you, you get opportunities essentially fall under your lap. Uh, one of them was this mask company. Um, a, my business partner at that time, he had a friend that is a CEO and a founder of a mask company and needed help to be able to start it from a Kickstarter all the way to a full fledged business where we're printing out 50 masks, uh, for the, you know, per hour, um, safely and securely in state so that we don't have to worry about.

Import export all the way from elsewhere because everything was on a pause and so out of nowhere There's an opportunity where a mass company falls in my lap and now I have to pivot from thinking I need to get investments in real estate to hey, I need to be the sole marketer for Um, how to distribute this mask, like, for everyone.

Um, and rightfully so, because of just the dynamic, or like, the nature of, like, where things were happening. And so, yeah, I, I didn't close my door. I didn't say, hey, nope, this is not for me. But I was like, hey, I'm ready to take on a new challenge, and, you know, if this thing comes into fruition, this will also work.

Like, reap the rewards and benefit from it as well. 

Mmm. So it was at the same, you were still doing the real estate stuff and then also, like, helping with this mascot. Correct. 

Real estate never, never, um, ended on my end. It was still continuous, but I also knew that deals were very slow in terms of, um, Being able to capitalize on it.

And so So you had like some 

It wasn't like your full attention. You had extra bandwidth to do both. 

Exactly. Gotcha. Because by the nature of it, you couldn't put your full attention to it. That makes sense. Yep. 

Time wise. Um, okay. Did you touch upon fall? Fall yeah, I mean like spring summer or like fall like you tripped.

Yeah. Oh, actually that's true I think well winter towards fall time I actually went fall towards winter time is when out of nowhere We we're staying in in Idaho and then fall fall time comes and we're like, oh just kidding we're gonna now break our lease and Now drive all the way to Nevada where we're gonna set up shop here for Ford is mass company You So I was like, uh, okay.

Uh, who made that decision? It was, it was a mutual decision because we ended up buying a, uh, or leasing a huge facility to be able to import a huge, like, uh, mask company or maker, essentially, uh, to be able to do that. 

Okay, 

so then 

by Idaho, hello 

Nevada. Yeah by Idaho. It was great seeing you and then like hello, Reno Yeah, it's a little bit closer to California, but still 

yeah a preference between Idaho or Reno 

You know what North Idaho I will say Okay North Idaho, Coeur d'Alene area is beautiful.

I think, um, a lot of people, it's one of those like hidden gems that if people know about it, it's like, it's awesome. Uh, if people don't, then it's like their lost type of thing. No one really, it's not glamorous for people to like, it's not for Instagram. But it's a place that people would actually like and, and, and want, would want to visit.

So is it like, is it like very, like, how do you say this? It's like, Wild or is this like 

suburban 

city. It's very it's 

very like suburban It feels like a it feels like an like Irvine but like cooler because like you get snow there. Oh cool It's gonna be north. Yeah. 

Yeah, they're like, oh people like me like You're so cool.

You live in Idaho. Yeah, nice Yeah, I gotta visit sometime. Um, is there a, so, next topic, or like not next topic, but um, so we know what a 8 to 5 sort of routine is, right? So then like, what is the daily routine for an entrepreneur running multiple different companies or have different things going on, irons in the fire?

Like, what does that look like? Like, do you clock in, do you report to yourself? Like, do you pay yourself a paycheck? And it's like, you yell at yourself for being late. Like, how does that work? 

Yeah, this goes for one of the also lessons that you eventually learn. Um, from jumping into entrepreneurship that you don't get to know until you, you're, you're, you're part of it.

Like, I used to pride myself in being able to compartmentalize very well. What I mean by that is, Uh, once I'm off of work, that's great. I could do all of these things and work essentially, or like a corporate job became sort of like an anchor, an anchor in a sense where, um, this is what you're doing for these set hours, which means you get to really place everything, every single schedule that you have around it accordingly, so that you can get through all these, uh, these items when you're an entrepreneur.

You wake up sometimes at 6 a. m. in the morning where you have to put out a fire. You stay up till 1 or 2 a. m. because for real estate investment, um, someone is, you know, uh, doing something like with your property, uh, that you can't go. And then, uh, You know, your job, your work is, like, it's on your mind the entire time because it is your business, it is your baby.

Like I 

Turn babies off and be like, okay, take care of yourself. Exactly. I gotta go to the gym. 

Yeah, at least not when it's Like, still small, right? And the thing is, is that I had a business partner that started his entrepreneurship journey, um, earlier than me. So to me, I remember when I, when I ended up partnering with him, I was like trying to be like, Hey man, we could, we should set up time to like work out at this hour.

Like we just straight up start a program and being able to really compartmentalize a lot of things. And again, slowly but surely, it's like. You're like, no, this, there's certain things that are on fire that you need to prioritize. There's certain things that are not, that are always going to mess with your schedule.

And you need to be able to understand and roll with the punches. 

Right, so you're the boss, everything kind of falls on you and there's no clocking out, clocking in. It's like, you're responsible for this, this baby 24 7 or whatever. Exactly. Right, that makes sense. Okay. So very encouraging. I think now we all want to be entrepreneurs.

What I'm saying is like, ultimately what I'm trying to get across is that all of these things is not something that someone should be able to fear, but sometimes it's just a realistic expectation of exactly what it, what it means. That means that a person that's an entrepreneur, like. You know, you could clearly look up in any websites, like, Oh, what are the abilities that people have?

Like, well, one of them is really, like, time blocking and scheduling. That you have to do. And if you're not naturally, like, that type of person, you better make sure that you, you are, or you become one. Because Or 

have, partner with someone who is, or have an assistant, or if you can. 

Exactly. Right. Because at that point, it's Like when you are not very good at compartmentalizing of what's considered high priority, mid priority, or like low priority, it's going to eat you up.

Like that's, that's what it comes to and again, it's not to scare people, but it's, it's like a true expectation of what it means to be able to grind like that. 

That makes sense. Um, have you heard of, uh, you know, those, um, I mean, you're, you're an entrepreneur, so maybe, but like, you know, there's like the number one, number two of a company, right?

They say like that, the stereotype number one, the number one person is usually like the, uh, The visionary, the, you know, the head in the cloud sort of thing. And then the number two is the more logical sort of organized person. And that's like a very strong dynamic to have. And a lot of these companies out there, I can't come to, nothing comes to mind, but like, you know, I'm talking about that sort of archetype of like the one and the two.

Um, and sometimes like you have to lean into one or the other, or maybe you're just your natural strengths. And if you find a good partner, that is a good number two. Or if you're the number two, you find a number one. Um, and so I know you've had multiple ventures. Like. I guess first question is, one, do you identify as either like that one or two archetype and or like, how do you navigate that sort of thing?

Do you wear both hats? Um, have you been able to find a number one number or two? Like, so how does that? 

Great. Yeah. So my business partner, um, I would say he's a really big number one. Mm. He, um, And from him, I have to learn, and this is one of the things that I learned on the spot. And I think that, again, people don't prepare you for is, like, being able to learn how to pivot, like, faster.

Like, I can't emphasize that enough. For me, just like you said, as a number two archetype, you're the type of person that, like, likes organization. Because to you, Process and procedures makes up what the business is. It solidifies it, it gives it like a steady like route to be able to stand on. But sometimes as you're continuously working on that, well, even if the, this, the basis is stable, if the idea is not as, as fruition, like, uh, comes into fruition as most, you need to be able to edit faster or move faster.

So I do identify it as the number two. But at the same time, There's times where, again, like you're, you're in a slump and I've felt that multiple times as well. Where you have to be that person that becomes the number one, um, and, and vice versa. So you have to be able to learn how to, um, to do both. But you also, it's one of those things where you just have to learn your strengths as well.

And, and, and know exactly when to. Or how to be able to do the other 

right. Right. I imagine that a lot of people, let's say if they have that desire to be an entrepreneur, they at least are that there's a part of them that's that one. Right. Cause they have this creative vision. They have this sort of like, okay, I want to.

Create something in the world. I want to own my own life or create a business. Right. And so there is some aspect of that number one. And naturally the number one is the person you're starting the company of one. And so you are number one, naturally, but you also have to do that number two. Um, so then some people might lean towards that, but like, if you're a number two type and like, I think both of us are kind of like that, maybe like, you know, you, you did accounting wealth management.

So you do have this sort of organizational side to you. Obviously you have the entrepreneurial side as well, like the visionary side. Um, so it's like, I don't know how, I, I guess what I'm trying to say is there are a lot of number twos who have like, okay, I want to do this thing, but also they don't have that sort of like, that one that pushes you, that one that's like, yeah, let's just do the things that, but those, those number ones don't necessarily know how to execute and they're not good with time management or like, stereotypes, right?

But like, They need that number two to help them keep them in line because they're ahead in the clouds, right? So I guess like, number one, it's easy. You have an idea, you execute on it, maybe you find help to find the number two. But then if you're a number two type and you want to start a business, like, how do you go about that?

Uh, if you are a number two and you're trying to start a business, That's, like, again, like, I think that's why networking and connections and surrounding yourself into, or putting yourself in a position where inevitably you're gonna be surrounded with people like that, uh, like, matters a lot. Like, I couldn't, I didn't find my number one until, like, later down while I was at Private Wealth, and at that point, he'd, uh, you know, we didn't work together, he was actually, like, an old roommate of mine, um, back when I just started.

And so. Yeah, it's, it's being, you know, what would be fun is if, you know, they created a dating app specifically for entrepreneurs where it's like one and two, and you label it from there. Oh, 

right, right, okay. It's like, wait, 

don't, 

I would imagine an app like that exists and they're just entrepreneurs, right?

Like 

entrepreneurs, not, not, not, not specifically for dating. Neither of us 

have any time, but let's date, why not? Yeah, exactly. But yeah, I mean. But those types, okay, let's match. Okay, but you're saying like in a partnership. In a partnership. Not a relationship. Not a romantic relationship. Oh, darn. Yeah. I'm dating my number two, you know.

She's more organizational though. Actually, that'd be like, you know, good partnerships and marriages are kind of like that sometimes, right? Like they're like polar, not polar opposites, but you know, they're like different. Yeah. So it works well in that sense. Usually you have the, the more organized person always falls in love with the romantic, like, head in the clouds sort of person.

So maybe it is a good parallel. 

Exactly, but you can't, the only thing is, is that sometimes people don't know how to compartmentalize between business and pleasure, so. 

Yeah, because I would imagine like you have two number ones and nothing gets done. You just have all these ideas. Two number twos and you're just like, okay, we are not doing anything.

What are we organizing? What are we organizing? We just have spreadsheets and they look great, but what are we doing? Yeah, 

yeah, you're running in, you're running in circles. And I think, again, like at least for me, When, like, I don't know, let's say, it starts off with like finding a hobby. Figuring that out.

You, you get to surround yourself with more people. And with more people, you get to understand like, Hey, like, this is what they're dedicating their time to outside of the things that you guys are in common with. And then from there, when you, when you, when you develop those things and items, like there's people that are going to be willing to listen to like your ideas.

Even going to like meetups where people are just pitching, like, Themselves or like how how they are. I think those actually work very well because again There's people that are always going to be willing to listen and when you have that that's like, you know a portion of what makes a company anyways 

All right.

So quick quick turn pivot Okay So in the shoes of let's say someone who has an idea and they want to start their own business small business or whatever their pursuit may be, right? Like, I guess, what advice would you give them? Like, they have this idea and they want to execute on it. As someone who has taken businesses from, in your mind, an idea to like actual execution and like making money, um, like what advice would you give for someone who's like, who just has like Etsy shop or they want to do this thing or that thing, various fields, like how do they start?

Create a game plan. I think. A lot of people when the reason why number one's at least in my opinion, it's sometimes it just stays as a number one and it's not executed is because again, like the, the head in the clouds, like idea is, it doesn't become solidified when you start having a game plan, you're funneling in like a more solid, like plan of being able to execute even to the minute details.

A lot of people are saying, let's say, Hey, I want to build an app that does this. Okay. Well, then. It's always just going to be like an idea until you say, okay, how much would it cost to hire a software engineer? Because that's not your, you know, that's not the type of role that you're trying to do. How much is it going to be to be able to run like operationally?

Who's going to be managing these things down? Once you start funneling everything, that's when it becomes a bit more concrete. And then that's when you realize, okay, is this worth my time? Is this something that I'm going to pursue? And is this, uh, the way that I'm going, the way that I'm going about it? Or do I pivot to something else that I know is much more manageable for me?

And like, that's when you really get to understand like the, Opportunity cost of a lot of things. 

Okay. So basically you have an idea, put it down on paper, organize it, read up the details, make it concrete and see if it's actually feasible to pursue. And at that point, let's say, okay, you know, you figured out all that sort of logistics, maybe it's a low barrier to entry and like, okay, it'll cost X amount of money and this is the steps to do.

Um, So 

then, and then you just do it. No. That's when, again, that's when the self reflection comes. Of saying, is this the thing that I want to be able to do and pursue? Because then, at that point, you understand, by the time that you're done with that game plan, that's when you truly understand the dedication that it's going to take in order for something to be executed like this.

You know what I mean? It's very easy to just be like, oh hey, I'm gonna go buy a 7 Eleven. And, and you know what I mean, like the minute you buy that, like, first of all, not everyone has that amount of capital and yes, you could get a loan from it, but like the minute that happens, then what? It's not like, like you have it there and someone else is managing it for you because it's already pre built perfectly fine.

Like some people could go through entrepreneurs like that too. That's perfectly fine. But when you're creating something, when you're starting something anew, it's a lot of like, understanding that there's, aside from all of these factors that come from the game plan, second, the last question that you're gonna have is, is this gonna work?

You know? And again, it's, it's being able to understand that, and when you, and when you become honest with yourself. That's when it's like, okay, I am going to, like, that's when people actually either take a step from it or not, right? Or it's just always going to be an idea. 

So, self reflection, being honest with yourself, trying to ask yourself if it's going to work.

Um, sometimes you don't know if it's going to work until you try it, right? Yep, absolutely. So, I guess the, the next thing as like a, Random, like as a person, how do you take it to that? Uh, I guess what stops people from taking action on that sort of things? Of course, a lot of people probably get to that point where they're like, okay, I have this plan.

I'm a number two person. I think it's all organized. Um, what do you think stops people and how would, how do you think they should overcome that? 

I think it's just, um, their risk tolerance. I think one of that's the biggest thing that, that stops people from really pursuing, if they get to the point where they already have a game plan, And stuff like that.

Again, like the idea behind it is like the opportunity cost that you're putting in between whether or not this is going to be worth the time that I'm doing or not. You're right. No, a lot of people don't know whether or not the things that they're currently doing now is going to work or not. At the same time, when you Again, by the time that you get to that point, you've already done all the other steps to even get there.

Number one is again, surround yourself by the people that are continuously doing that. So the very least, you have a good supporting group of people that are pursuing new ideas as well. So now you're put into an environment that you're able to do that. Um, what stops people is like, one of them is money, which by the way, I don't think that people should, I don't think people should really put that much money Uh, thought in terms of like, the cost of things and here's the reason why.

When, like number one, there's a lot of ways to be able to borrow money. And I'm not saying that to put yourself in debt, but at the end of the day, if you're starting a business anyways, regardless of whether or not It's going to work or not, the bet that you're putting is on yourself. And so, like, uh, into that, into that point, it's like, it's, it's like, it's essentially investing in yourself.

There's people that go to college that have to take loans anyways. And then, like, you know, the realistic part of it is that some people, after they go to college, after they incur this debt, they don't, like, uh, college does not promise you a job afterwards. There's no real security from there anyways. So if you treat it, I know, shocker, right?

But if you treat it the same way, then, then you're putting that bet on yourself. That like saying, Hey, I'm going to execute this because I've written out a very good plan. Like money should come like last out of all of these things. And then again, realize that you're going to, you're going to make it no matter what.

It's that persistence. 

Um, did we touch on favorite failures? I know we had, we had stories, but like, I guess more than favorite failures, but like, I guess, what did you learn from that? Cause we heard about like the real estate and then like the market, and then you moved to Nevada and then mass company, um, favorite failures and, or like, what did you learn from those, those things?

Yeah. I think one thing that I'm still continuously. Learning, I would say, is how to be able to pivot faster. Um, I think So you don't 

think you pivoted fast enough? 

No, I When you, when you're a number two and when you learn from like number ones that are continuously putting out ideas out there and what you're trying to do is support them and, and, and, and go from that point of view.

Usually number twos are the ones that typically take a longer time to be able to pivot. Felt that. Yeah, exactly. And so, and so, you know, sometimes like you end up where like, Hey, like there's this thing and you feel happy about it because you feel attached that something is, is great and things are working.

But guess what? It might not be the realization that you want. So then you have to pivot somewhere else, you know? And I think that's, that's part of like learning. That's part of digesting what it really means or what it really takes. Yeah. Um, one of my other favorite failures I would say is, or lessons that I learned is mentally wise.

Uh, I, I, I took a lot of like, like personal coaching, like growth coaching, uh, myself and, and I, and when I initially started entrepreneur, there was a lot of imposter syndrome that I had to deal with. I was like, am I this person? Am I that real, that entrepreneur that, that I said that I was going to be, or at least that I thought in my head that I was, but there's times where you straight up have to be like, yes, I am.

And the fruits haven't came yet. Yes, I am this, you know, like entrepreneur that has successful jobs that also had failed jobs. But guess what? I'm just starting off. I'm not there yet, but I am that person because I know that I can be that person and I'm going to take what it takes to be able to get to that point.

As a person and when, again, when you're setting yourself up like that, I think that's, um, it carries out and then it surprises you how, how much it actually pushes you, yourself, 

innately. I like that. So it's kind of like a affirming yourself of who you are, like identifying as that thing. Even if you don't have the results, the tangible results now, the outcomes, but you, you identify as that person and it kind of propels you towards those actions, habits, mindsets, whatever.

Um, cause it's the same with like fitness, right? It's like if you identify as a healthy person who works out and goes to the gym and prioritizes health, naturally, once you take on that identity and that mindset, your actions will follow because then you won't take actions that are not in line with your identity, right?

It's like cognitive dissonance. Exactly. And that's like the first step is like the mind shift of that. Yeah. 

Your mind is, uh, uh, physical health is always. Always going to be important for sure, but your mental health as well, when you have a strong fortitude, when you have a great mindset, and not only that, when you're feeding yourself great, like a great mindset, I think those like matter a lot more than everything else.

What you're consuming. Exactly. Into your, into your mind. Exactly. Cool. Um, I, I want to pivot again. So there's two different topics, uh, we can, we can pick and choose. Okay. Okay. This was not, this is not on the list of questions, but dating, we don't have to talk about it, but I was, my question would be how does 

long walks on the beach?

Yeah, exactly. Um, how does an, like, so the question is, you don't have to answer it yet is how does one date, uh, when you have a full time entrepreneurship job? You know what I mean? Like you're, it's your whole life, right? I would imagine that's difficult. But the next topic would be like advice for, let's say high school students, college students that are curious about entrepreneurship.

Like, what would you, what advice would you give them? And, or like how to decide between a typical corporate life and entrepreneurship. I know you talked about like, it's be prepared for the mindset, be prepared, prepared for the hardships. And there's a mindset that is needed for that. And it's going to be tough.

It's be flexible, pivot and all that stuff. But then if you're, Putting yourself in one of their shoes. It's like, Oh, how do I decide? Like, I want to be an entrepreneur, but I don't know if it's the right thing. Um, and then like, when is it time to quit if at all? Right. Cause that's a real question. Um, so yeah, dating or, you know, advice to high school, college students.

Okay. I could technically touch on both because I'm just going to make it very simple with, with the first one. The first with dating specifically, unless you find a person that is Also as selfless and also very understanding of the types of things that you're trying to do. And you are okay with also the risk tolerance that the other person is able to make for you.

That's the only time that it will, in my opinion, will work. Especially when you're just starting to date. Because, like, unfortunately, at least for me, during my time, uh, Of, of putting my head down and wanting a business to work, I couldn't think of anything else. And it would, and I know for a fact that, at least for me, like dating would suffer on the other side and I don't want to be, I don't want to risk that for the other person.

It's not fair. So I'm going to leave it as that people have made it work. Absolutely. People have made it work. And I think the people that have made it work are the ones that are in relationships before, and then decided to go into, um, entrepreneurship 

and then their partners, like kind of on board and their understanding.

Exactly. To have that context. But then as you're saying, like, if you, if you're an entrepreneur first and then you're trying to date, it's kind of difficult. 

Yes, absolutely. It happens and it's great, but it's, it is very difficult. Uh, as far as advice for. Um, a younger self, like I'll even put myself in my position, I think for me, it's a matter of if you've had this itch that you're, that you, that you feel, because innately, like, that's what happens, you have this itch of wanting to be, like, to do this for yourself, you either, like, do you scratch it now or do you scratch it later?

And what I mean by that is like, you're always, it's always going to, it's always going to be there. And the last thing that you want to do is become very established at, you know, uh, a later age and, and have a lot of more responsibilities that you're thinking of. And then you're like, okay, I want to start my entrepreneur now.

Like that, like I would not advise on that. So I, I, my biggest advice for that is if you have this itch now, really think about it. We really start early because. Then it's okay. Then it's okay. You have the rest of your time and your, and your lifespan that first of all, you've learned from everything that you're going to get from your entrepreneurship journey that you could clearly, um, use to accelerate yourself later on and, and put yourself later on in the business world.

But starting late. Um, Starting, starting at a later time, I would say poses more challenges, especially if you want to be able to do more things in your life. 

So I imagine that if I'm a high school or college student and I'm like, okay, I have this idea and I would do want to start early, but. I also, my parents want me to go to school, college, and then have a job.

And I also want that security because everyone knows that being an entrepreneur is risky and it's way safer to have a nine to five. Right. Um, so then how, what would you say to, to that sort of point? Because 

This shows your, I mean, that's what I did. I, I almost was like, dad, look at this. Oh, 

so like, Oh, 

so like, This is 

why I 

want 

to be an 

entrepreneur.

This is why I want to be an entrepreneur. This is what it's going to take. Yeah. I might not learn this or I might, I'm gonna, I might fail at everything. But all of this knowledge that I see right here, boom. Very, very resident to anyone. And I'm going to be a hiring, like a hireable person in the, in, in the late future.

Because I've learned what it takes. I have learned what it takes to like time manage. I've learned what it takes to be able to be social and connect with people because that's very important. Like all of these intangible things that You are in inevitably going to be doing at a job is all translatable from being an entrepreneur So 

you're learning as you go and it's you're not losing any time.

You're not wasting your time So then what about people who like, okay? I'm definitely going to college but I don't think I can do both or maybe they think they have to choose one or the other is like this corporate sort Of path and then maybe I do entrepreneurship later because I want to make sure that this is fine Like what would you say to that?

I would say that's perfectly fine I think that it's very acceptable as a person that no because that's exactly what I did You I didn't, I knew I had an itch. I didn't know what that itch was until I started deep diving into it. I think for me, my biggest thing that I wanted to make sure was, hey, I wanted to ensure or reassure that to my family that I am capable of being able to take care of myself because it's ultimately the only thing that they asked for.

And so when, when you're able to do that and then realize like, hey, like now it's time to be able to do myself a favor. And, and, and, and pursue this. Like, that's also like acceptable as well. And that's okay, because that's exactly what I did. 

Right, so like it's fine to go to the traditional path and, you know, make your parents proud and or show that you can support yourself.

Yep. But, um, but if you have the itch, definitely scratch it, you know, ideally sooner than later. Yep. And you could do both too, right? You could do both. I mean, that's exactly what I'm doing now. Like, I, you know, Like starting a company while you're in school, or have a job, or whatever like that, or some sort of endeavor.

Exactly. I mean, if there's people right now that could land jobs and never went to, went to school, like, you could, you could do both. There's really, like, no exception. Like, The internet and everything else is like, so what? There's no excuses. 

Yeah, I agree. Um, okay, so I guess, last question on this topic is if you could redo it all over again from our first year at UCI, or your first year at UCI, whatever, not the same grade, but if you were first year at UCI, Virani, what would you redo, or how would you do that differently?

If I was a first 

Like you're undeclared major, whatever, and you're just fresh, like you can go any direction, you just, you know. 

I would, I would dedicate a time at least once a week, which is, you know, a lot of people think, Oh, that's not a lot like now, but back in college, when everything is just sporadic and stuff like that, like everything goes, but I would dedicate at least once a week and, and really call it like Like internal self reflection to myself.

I love that. And when you, when you dedicate like just one day, like even if it's an hour, of saying what do I really want to do? In my life, which is a big question and you're not supposed to answer it within the first hour of the, of the first week saying 

you can 

answer that as an 18 year old. No, you, you can't, but, but yeah, but the, but the, but the best part about it is like in asking that question, it gives you the opportunity to ask even more questions from it.

And that's when you get to really understand yourself. Like, I loved my college time because of the fact that, like, I was out there and put it, and going out there. But the minute that I got out of college, I knew that I needed to work on myself a lot more. And I could have avoided that, essentially, if I gave myself that leeway of saying, What is it that I'm actually doing for me?

And then, and then it goes from there. 

Yeah, definitely. I have the same piece of advice for when I talk to college students, like they don't know what they're doing or they're trying to figure themselves out. I'm like, the most important thing you can do in this time is to find, figure out yourself, figure out what you're all about, how you take strengths, what inspires you, what energizes you, because that's a lifelong process, but as you do that.

Like you said, one hour of self discovery or whatnot. Then it calibrates your compass so you know which way you're supposed to be going because now you know yourself better. Whereas if you're trying to just go in this direction because society or your parents told you, it could be the wrong way because you didn't take the time to understand yourself and figure out who you are as a person.

Because you don't want to be going, like, spending 40 years climbing up this ladder and you realize it's the wrong building you were going up because you didn't take the time to calibrate your compass, right? 

Yeah. 

Um, yeah. 

So, you know what's very interesting about that, right? Like in terms of how kids grow, you have an age of 1 and what they consider now is like either like 18 to really fully, physically develop yourself, right?

Like that's, that's exactly what it is. But it takes a longer time afterwards to mentally develop. Like, develop yourself, and when you become more self aware of a lot of things, it does, it does, what you consider is a weakness, it could actually be a strong suit. Knowing that you are weak at something is, is, is a pro.

Like, you know, as much as people don't, like, don't understand that. Like, if you know that you're the type of person that can't sit on a chair for like, Like 18 hours in a day, like, you know, certain paths are not for you and that's okay because the more comfortable you are with the type of things that you want to be able to pursue, the happier you're going to be and the more successful that you're going to feel.

Nice. Yeah, I like that. It's like that Tony Robbins quote, it's uh, like success without fulfillment is failure. Yes. Right? Cause it's like, yeah, you can succeed in whatever metric society gives you, but if you're not fulfilled, if you're not doing the things you meant, you're meant to be doing and that you were built and designed to do, then what's the point?

Yeah, absolutely. Absolutely. Cool. Um, anything else on that topic? Uh, Do you feel like we missed? Oh, 

for, for, 

for my, for what I would do differently? 

Oh, 

differently, yeah, yeah. 

Uh, I would, I, explore more. 

Like in what way? 

In, in, in, all aspects of, In all aspects of activities that college has to offer. I think, uh, I, I think I did very well on my freshman year of dabbling into a lot of things.

But as you get, you know, to your sophomore year, to your junior year, senior year, where you feel like you need to establish, like, a lot more, like, have a specific identity for a lot of things, like, what you end up missing is the curiosity of finding out other things that inspire you. So, like, for me, like, You know, like, dance, you know, if it wasn't for dance, I obviously wouldn't have met you.

At the same time, if I did dance for only a certain amount of time, and then like, not through the rest, like, there would have been more opportunities for me to give leeway to new ideas, or even like, connect people, uh, in the same field as me. 

Like some more exposure to more things. Yep. More opportunities to find those things that might, like, pique your interest.

Yes. 

Yes. College is about, as much as it is for your general education, it's really just finding about yourself. 

100 percent agree. Um, cool. Um, so we can go into rapid fire questions. Sure. I mean, they don't have to be, they're, the questions are rapid fire, but the answers could, you know, be however long. Yep.

Um, so this is the, uh, the billboard question. I took this from one of my favorite podcasts, Tim Ferriss show. I want to be on his podcast one day. Um, maybe, maybe I can ask him on mine. But, um, if you could put up a sign for millions of people to see, what would it say? So the spirit of the question is like, what's, what is a message that you want people to hear or see and like, kind of take in?

Uh, like if I was to put like a quote, essentially for like, for myself or like about me or for It's a, it's a message that like, the world will see. The world will see. Yeah. It is okay to fail. That would be my, that would be my, that would be my message. Because you feel like people think it's not okay to fail?

Because I think that that's what scares a lot of people from, from Uh, like going back to what you said, like, oh, what's, what scares people from pursuing, like, their dreams? like, sometimes it's just, like, the idea that, like, their dreams could actually fail. But when you're okay with that, like, you get to grow and learn and know yourself even more.

That's okay. 

That's the point, right? Um, so I know we kind of talked about this, like, what if you could redo your first year, but I guess generally, like, do you have a biggest regret or something that you would do differently? 

My biggest regret, uh, okay, I have one, but this comes back to, I think it's, so one of the things that, uh, and this could be like a completely like different, like deeper thing, but I always put myself in a position, and I think this is something that I'm learning, right, where I pursued, or my, my pursuit in terms of success in terms of entrepreneurship has also caused me the opportunity to also find, like, a meaningful, meaningful in a sense of like a romantic relationship.

Because again, like that, that was the case. So I don't know. I think maybe at the years that I'm currently at right now, sometimes it makes you self reflect about like, Hey, would I have been this successful? Or would I have been to this point now? Had I pursued something like that? You know what I mean?

Like beforehand or, or what do you call this? Or would I actually have been further from where I am now? Went to go by myself and no regrets whatsoever type of thing But it's just a matter of like if you are able to understand that and and and like as a food for thought type of Thing something I think 

about our reflection yeah, 

like then then then you get to you know, like when they say two heads are better than one like what if You're the person that you, you know, your partner, your future partner is that also that person that also helps you like that too.

Like dating year one and two. Right, exactly. 

Um, we, we did talk about advice so far, but is there a piece of advice you would give your younger self now and what would it be? Um, any age range, maybe like 10 year old Rani or 

Invest in No, I just There 

you go. That was the one. No, 

no, no, no. Uh, I I think my Again, I think it goes back to like, what would I have done differently?

It's, again, like, make sure that the amount of Like, that you put time for yourself. Make sure that you put time to, like, really dig deep inside and understand yourself. Because when that happens, I think. More self aware you are like sometimes the more cynical you become but I I honestly think and I honestly believe that the more Self aware you are the the more your path becomes a bit more Understand like there's the paths that's made for you because like shows up faster 

Okay, are there any like habits or routines that you feel like really help you in your life right now that you're like You would never give up and you know, you would advise other people or like suggest.

Hey, this really helps me You 

Uh, yes. The, the thing that I would advise is find, find your three. One that makes you money, one that keeps you healthy, and one that keeps you sane. Like activities? Like, yeah, like those three, those three things. It's, uh, it's three activities and or careers or whatever. But it's, it's, uh, One that keep, one that, that you're able to be able to live, one that's going to keep you healthy because your, your body is your temple, essentially, and you want to be able to protect it, then one that's going to mentally keep you sane so that you could focus on all the things that you're going to want to do anyways.

I like that. Um, so who would you call successful and or how do you define success? Like are there any people in your life, in the world, that you're like, that person's successful and then here's how I define success. 

Oh man, um,

I can't think of anything at the moment, but I will, I will, I'll definitely get back to you. It's like, no one's, no one's successful 

in this world, 

it's just. I, I think it's definitely a, it's a question I haven't like dug deep into it, because everyone could easily say, like, you know what I mean, like, the Jeff Bezos in the world is like successful, but like, is it really successful, is he really successful when, you know, he goes on a divorce like afterwards and is now like, And it's like, I don't define that as success.

So how do you define success? I define success as similarly to like that Tony Robbins quote that you said. It's like being fulfilled with like, with all the things that you're gonna want. It's to be able to, my success, my personal success journey is Like, what, like, me being flexible, me being able to do what I want financially free, and me being able to do, like, do what I love with the people that I love.

That's my, that's what I consider success. 

Cool. Um, last few. So if time and money weren't an obstacle, what would you be doing now? 

Uh, 100 percent traveling. 

Traveling 

where? Yes. Uh, I will continue, for one, if that was an issue, I would actually still, I have not gone to Europe yet, so I would be traveling all over Europe.

I, I would actually try to hit up every single, like, uh, country that I have not been in. And I think one of my big, big pastimes that I do is like, People watch. Um, because Not creepy at all. Yeah. No, uh, it's because, like, when you travel, you visit another place that you're unfamiliar with. And you're culturally just absorbing it like a sponge.

Being exposed to different cultures. Yeah, I think it widens up your horizon even more. And it makes you It breaks down a lot of the things that you consider, like, you've built so much as concrete. And you realize, like, maybe, like, that's not necessarily that's done everywhere. Exactly. And when, and when you have that, like, malleability, like, the more you get to be, like, able to accept a lot more things.

Definitely. Um, how do you spend most of your time? I know you're an entrepreneur and that's a full time thing. Um, anything else besides, you know, working on your businesses? 

Worrying about business. Working on business? Worrying about business. Yeah, no, uh, I, again, I think I found my, one thing that keeps me healthy is obviously going to the gym.

Uh, one thing that keeps me, like every now and then, you know, board game night with, with, with friends, uh, is actually fun to keep me a, a bit distracted. Um, and also, like, I know we use chat GPT to, to write it down, but yes, like, I am a food enthusiast, but only if people are willing to try new things and they invite me, because I, I don't have time to think about it.

Yeah, you're like, I 

can't take initiative on this stuff, but invite me out. Yeah. So this is an open invite. If you want to try new foods, Rani is down to go. Yes, please. Absolutely. And so you can deadlift 750. No, no, no, no, no. Try. I can try. Okay. But it might break my back. Yes. Um, okay. So do you have any, um, favorite movies, books, videos, articles, um, that you share or recommend the most?

Uh, the two books that I would highly recommend, especially if people are, you know, Pursuing, um, again, entrepreneurship, life, and journey. There's two big key things that I think will help you a lot. Number one is, again, the 80 20 principle. And when you define 80 20 principle, not only from like an operation perspective, but a mental perspective, that's what's going to prepare you.

The second one is atomic habits. I think. Being able to fundamentally like define certain anchors as, as a habit for you to keep you sane and to, to progress, even if it's a 1 percent per day, uh, Progression Is going to help you in the long run in terms of how persistent you're going to be because you're going to, you're.

Innately going to develop that persistency from that as well. 

Um, James Clear, right? Yes. Yeah, such a good book. Probably one of the most, like, referred self improvement sort of books. But it's really good on habits and, like, how It's actionable, too. Yes. Um, yeah, I I guess this is a selfish plug for myself.

Marleyonacruz. com. I do book summaries. Um, it's, like, definitely one of my top books. But, um 

You know, that's exactly how I found that book. 

Oh, yeah? Oh, 

I I saw one of your posts, uh, about it. I read the synopsis. Thank you. And then I was at a plane, an airplane, like, place, souvenir place, and I was like, What's a good book to read?

And I got the book. 

Nice. See? Changing lives. Oh yeah, subscribe to my, uh, my, my blog. I do book summaries. It's just for myself. It's kinda like this, right? It's like, I like reading, I like learning, and then I like to be able to teach to other people. Yes. Um, cause that's what this is for. Um, okay, so that's all the, the main questions.

These are the ending ones. So like, um, I like to end with gratitude. This is something I got from my mom, you know? So, uh, what are you most grateful for, Rani? 

What am I most grateful for? Uh, I think I'm most grateful for my, my friends and family. Um, they are the reasons, they're part of the pillars and one of the reasons as to why I am where I am today and without them, without their support.

Uh, and I, I think that I would be in a much rockier place. 

Support systems, everything. Um, final ask for the audience. Any, any like asks, um, suggestions or? 

Yeah, I think all I ask for, uh, for the audience, I, it may have seemed like my, my conversations is coming from a very like, like risky thing. But that's also because of the fact that, Like, there's, if you want to find someone that's looking for, if, for like affirmation of like entrepreneur is like this shiny glamorous thing, you're going to find that like very where else.

Like, I'm here to be able to expose like, Hey, there's rough patches and that's okay. That's quite literally part of it. And so if you think that, like, uh, I, I, it's not to scare anyone, it's to hopefully be able to encourage someone that like, even for me, that, that I would consider myself like good with the business that I have now, also ran into, into failures and that's okay.

It's, it's being able to like, You know, just have like that humbling experience that again, it's okay to fail. 

It's okay to fail. I like that. 

Um, so 

yeah. Where can people find you, Rani? Um, social media handles websites, anything. 

Yeah, I, I just have my personal, um, Instagram, which is at I Rani 49. Uh, if anyone wants, if there's people in terms of like the community that wants to be able to ask for advice, like I'm obviously open to getting messages from there or even through like LinkedIn as well, um, you know, You know, I'm an open book.

I would like to say, um, especially like when you just meet someone and it's, and yeah, I'm more than happy to be able to not only go through my journey, but also ask for like very specific tips and tricks with, uh, with my businesses. 

Nice. Cool. Um, so yeah, we'll have links to everything we talked about, Rani's socials, where you can find him, uh, in the show notes.

So yeah, thank you so much for, for being here, man. I really appreciate it. It was a fun conversation. I know we can go on for hours, obviously. So we'll definitely have parts two and three and whatnot. Um, so yeah, I just want to say thank you. And so I will read my outro script now. Um, maybe it'll, we'll have this recorded later on, but so thank you guys for, um, thank you to my audience for tuning in and listening.

Hope you guys learned as much as I have from this conversation. Uh, friendly reminder to be kind to yourself and to, um, others, especially yourself. And hopefully you can learn that, you know, with some humility. Um, there's always something that you can learn from someone else, aka gurus around you, if you just take the time to listen.

Um, so until next time, thank you so much for being here.