Dessert first clip (1_10-3_05)

Richard Blank

Built for This podcast Episode 29. Leaving the Expected Life: How Richard Blank Built a Company by Choosing Authenticity  "Built for This" is a business and leadership podcast hosted by business growth strategist and human behavior specialist Carly Pepin. The show focuses on the intersection of strategic business execution and personal development, exploring what it takes to scale a company without losing oneself in the process. Overview and Themes The podcast serves as an analytical yet candid space tailored for founders, CEOs, and C-Suite executives who view their companies as an extension of their personal identity. Human Behavior in Business: Leveraging her background as a ⁠Demartini Facilitator and behavior expert, Pepin unpacks the internal psychological shifts, unseen pressures, and emotional insights driving high-performing business leaders. Real Operational Stories: Episodes move away from generic advice to dissect raw, behind-the-scenes realities including navigating burnout, managing team alignment, overcoming strategic hurdles, and managing corporate pivots. Sustainable Growth: The conversations frequently emphasize how to build organizational structures, repeatable systems, and accountability without sacrificing core company culture.  In this episode of Built for This, Carly Pepin sits down with entrepreneur Richard Blank, CEO of Costa Rica’s Call Center, to explore the unconventional journey that led him from Philadelphia to building a thriving business abroad. Richard shares how stepping away from family expectations and societal pressure allowed him to pursue a life aligned with his own values. Moving to Costa Rica at 27, he started a company from scratch in an unfamiliar environment, proving that courage and authenticity can create opportunities where others see risk.   https://youtu.be/t_JF592PiRc

Transcript

00:00Staying true to a Generation X childhood dream, his passion for treasure hunting led him to build the largest collection

00:05of restored American pinball machines and antique jukeboxes in Costa Rica.

00:11So welcome, Richard. It's so good to have you.

00:14New Carly, so happy to be with you today.

00:17I think it's fun if you, which I'll put his website in the show notes, but if you look at

00:21his website, he has a whole section where you get to see the game room at the office and it

00:25does look really fun.

00:27Yeah, recess was the best class. You got to start with dessert first.

00:31Oh, totally. That's my husband's theory. You start with dessert first and it's been working for him, so.

00:37That's right.

00:38Awesome. Well, so what you were saying before is that you actually were supposed to go into the family real

00:44estate business.

00:46What made you decide to head on over to Costa Rica and then start this business?

00:52Building on momentum, Carly, my favorite class was Spanish. I became a Spanish major in college. I wasn't a real

00:59estate major.

01:00And even though something might be handed to you on a silver platter, it seems safe.

01:06But at the end of the day, that's not a true life. You really haven't tested the waters or tried.

01:11And so I could have always clicked my heels and came home and had that office and all the contacts,

01:16but I wanted to gamble.

01:18I wanted to see what could happen. And so I took this language, got this opportunity to move to Costa

01:24Rica, worked at a friend center, and I kind of saw it as a graduate school.

01:28I learned the business from the inside out and I was there for four years.

01:31And next thing you know, I threw my hat in the ring and started my own company.

01:34So looking back at it, it seems like it was destined and blueprinted, planned out, but I was kind of

01:42following my nose and where it was going to take me.

01:46When I used to get butterflies and good feelings, I realized I was in the right place.

01:51Yeah, I love that. I love that. So it's just a big part of following your intuitions.

Category

Transcript

Comments

Recommended