Alone, And So Very Afraid

In this episode, we meet Scott Fetters the Founder and Director of 2112 Incubator and the Center of Creative Entrepreneurship. Scott details how he first became involved in the music community in Louisiana while he was in college and then moved to Chicago to start his career in hospitality. But, his passion for music and entertainment caused him to leave his corporate career and over the last 10 years, he built an ecosystem in Chicago for the creative industries to collaborate and grow together. Now, Scott is looking to expand the concept globally and we're excited he came on the show to share his story!

On this episode, we spoke with Joe Kim to hear his story about taking a different path than everyone he grew up with. It was a grueling experience to go against the grain to find his own path and career.

On this episode, we spoke with Juan Fleitas, a Senior Loan Officer at Compass Mortgage. We follow his story in the mortgage industry and learned about how the big crash affected his career. We also discussed the lessons that he learned and how he bounced back from major setbacks. 

On this episode, we sat down with Kit Lancaster, the CEO and Founder of Sterling Edge Financial - a financial advising firm in Chicago. He started his career as a Field Artillery Officer in the U.S. Army where he was deployed to Iraq. Following his time in the Army, Kit went through a variety of ups and downs in his professional career until he finally landed in finance and start to piece things together. It was great to hear Kit's methodical approach on finally starting his own firm and being successful at it from the start!   Co Host - Eric Tseng and Alex Bok (PadScouts)

On this episode, we meet Antoine Lebrun the founder and CEO of Mikrokosmic Record Label. He started life under the assumption that he would enter a professional career in medicine, engineering, or law but decided to follow his passion into music, race car driving, and investments. Tune in to hear about his amazing career in professional race car driving, spanning two continents, and how he ended up investing in Bitcoin and starting a music label! We're excited to have him share his story.

On this episode, we meet Rob Tovar, the Director at 2112 - an entertainment startup incubator in Chicago, IL with over 125 member companies. Rob details how he navigated a career full of adventures and winding paths. We really enjoyed hearing about how he first started as a United States Marine and then pursued a career in a variety of industries starting in aviation and finally landing in entertainment.

On this episode, we meet RajNATION, the founder of The Startup Hypeman – a sales and startup consulting firm that helps brands find their voice. This was an amazing discussion where we dived deep into Raj’s story on failing at his first startup, living at home with parents, falling behind peers, becoming more spiritual, learning spirituality’s impact on humility, and finally succeeding in building a successful business!

On this episode of the Alone and So Very Afraid Podcast, we meet Jen Wong, the cofounder and managing partner at Zlatkin Wong – a Chicago based law firm that handles transactional and intellectual property needs of business and entertainment entrepreneurs. As a brand-new entrepreneur, having only started her firm a few months ago, Jen details how she decided to step away from working in a corporate setting and how she continues to avoid difficult conversations with people who might bring about a negative mindset to her decision.

On this episode of the Alone and So Very Afraid Podcast, we meet Gary Mages, cofounder of Mages and Price Attorneys at Law – a Chicagoland based law firm focused on collections, real estate, and litigation. They’ve been in business for 29 years and we were excited to hear Gary share his story of how he started practicing law from home and eventually took the risk of moving out to a shared office to start his practice. Gary showcases how he’s built a successful business through being authentic and likeable to maintain the trust and confidence of his clients, as well as, why being imperfect is the path doing being perfect.

On this episode of the Alone and So Very Afraid Podcast, we meet Ilya Zlatkin, a second time entrepreneur who is the founder and managing partner at Zlatkin Wong – a Chicago based law firm that handles transactional and intellectual property needs of business and entertainment entrepreneurs. As a second-time entrepreneur, Ilya has taken lessons he’s learned from his previous experience to building a successful business right out of the gate. He details his unique perspective on the professional service industry that allows him to be successful and they’re extremely important for anyone who is looking to build a business or fruitful long-term relationships.

On this episode of Alone and So Very Afraid Podcast, we meet Ken Clay, a serial entrepreneur who is the founder and CEO of 38th Street Studios and Trackit Technology. Hear his story on leaving sports agency to building consulting and technology companies. It is a road filled mistakes, learning hard lessons, and overcoming obstacles. The road to success is often a personal journey and Ken’s story is a perfect example of how we, ourselves, can be our biggest enemy in our own story. Getting over our own ego, habits, and identifying our own weaknesses are often what will lead to success.

Entrepreneurs Eric, Alex, and Dan tell their stories on why they decided to create their own paths in life and the challenges that came with their decisions.