What do congressional campaigns, The Apprentice and whiskey all have in common? Raj Bhakta, our guest for episode 120.

Raj is the consummate solopreneur: he has recreated himself and his path several times over in the last decade and we talk about the ups, the downs and the merit it takes to reinvent yourself as he has done.

More About This Show

Raj is a Philadelphia-native whose early career days were in the family business of hotels. On a whim, a friend convinced Raj to apply to be on the second season of The Apprentice. Though he wasn’t interested in reality TV, Raj saw it as an opportunity to gracefully bow out of his family’s line of work and as a chance to learn from Donald Trump.

After spending an interminable day waiting for his casting call, Raj made an impression on the people casting the show and he was brought on.

Though he was fired during the course of the show, he learned a lot which he carried into the next stage of his career.

You'll also discover things like:

* How WhistlePig Whiskey got its name.

* Character and smoothness: the lessons from whiskey that apply to people too.

* How quickly did he create WhistlePig after he had the idea?

* The necessity of adversity in business and in life.

* What did he do with an elephant and a mariachi band?

* And lots more!

After The Apprentice, Raj gave politics a shot and ran for Congress. He was beaten soundly. On the heels of two defeats, he took off for the hills of Vermont and made his home on a large farm where he secluded himself to recover and regroup. With only books to keep him company, Raj had his share of “dark nights of the soul” in which he didn’t know what to do next.

And when the economy tanked and his funds began to dwindle, he knew he had to do something and do it fast. His farmland made him think of grains and what comes from grains that is a solidly profitable product? Alcohol.

Raj knew beer and wine were both over saturated markets. But whiskey wasn’t. He saw the opportunity to combine his two passions: whiskey and solopreneurship.

With the help and guidance of a friend and other confidantes, Raj set about creating the finest rye whiskey possible. And today his efforts have yielded Whistle Pig Whiskey, which was given the highest rating of a whiskey clocking in at 96 by Wine Spectator. For those of you not into wine ratings, that’s phenomenal!

With or without his latest success, Raj is a true solopreneur. He has faced adversity, lived through some dark times and reinvented himself time and time again to do what he loves.

Join me in thanking Raj for being on the show! Share in the comments below and send a Tweet about what adversities you’ve overcome.

Episode Resources

WhistlePig Rye

Raj's Farm

Raj on Twitter

The Apprentice

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