Ismael Hernandez shares his remarkable journey from Fidel Castro's disciple to advocate for free market principles and individual dignity. He'll detail how coming to the U.S. caused him to re-evaluate free markets and human dignity —but also what it was like as a poor minority to be on the receiving end of charitable programs —and how we can and must do better.

Learn more about the Freedom & Virtue Institute

Hernandez's most recent book, Rethinking Charity: Restoring Dignity to Poverty Relief

Study entrepreneurship at Catholic University's Busch School of Business

Pursue a career in Church Management

Prosper Podcast is a production of the ⁠Ciocca Center for Principled Entrepreneurship⁠ at Catholic University of America

Not every entrepreneur starts a business from scratch. Some find a model they can use and build on it. In today's episode, Robert Tunmire tells a great story about taking on a franchise when he was only 17 and how he rose in the ranks of Neighborly, coming to see business as an important way tol lift other people up. Learn how to build a company culture of support, the importance of having a strong personal "Why" —plus, the ins and outs of the franchise model, and how to choose a franchise that aligns with your goals and principles. PLUS: Robert's conversion and men's ministry!

Learn more about Neighborly, the company where Robert Tunmire made his mark.

Connect with Tunmire's men's apostolate, Heroic Men.

The two books Robert mentions are Scott Hahn's The Lamb's Supper and Born Fundamentalist, Born Again Catholic, by David Currie (to whom apologies for misremembering his authorship in our conversation!)

Prosper Podcast is a production of the ⁠Ciocca Center for Principled Entrepreneurship⁠ at Catholic University of America

Andreas & Rebecca welcome artist John Herreid to discuss the relationship between art and work, and practical tips for building a career as a working artist.

John’s recommended resources for artists in business; 

Getting Things Done by David Allen

Muddy Colors 

The Angelico Project

John Herreid’s own book, Catholic Home Gallery, would make a perfect Christmas gift for someone on your list. 

Featured artists: 

Nielson Carlin

Gwyneth Thompson Briggs 

The contemporary Annunciation by artist Nguyen Dinh Dang

Learn more about Church Management programs at the Catholic University of America

Learn more about the Ciocca Center, Catholic University of America’s entrepreneurship center.  Take our free video course, The Gospel of Work. 

Dr. Cabrini Pak, Marketing expert, discusses the intrepid entrepreneurship exhibited by her namesake, St. Frances Xavier Cabrini. Dr. Pak highlights the saint's curiosity, creativity, and fortitude in meeting the needs of marginalized immigrants. She also explores the concept of "entrepreneurial alertness" and how this relates to her speciality in addressing under-developed markets, such as the "sandwich generation," which she and her students are currently studying.

Learn more about Dr. Pak at her Catholic U faculty page or on LinkedIn.

Find more about Catholic University's Entrepreneurship Center at our university web page.

Take our free video course, The Gospel of Work.

Click here to learn more about our advertiser, Church Management Programs

Prosper Podcast is a production of the ⁠Ciocca Center for Principled Entrepreneurship⁠ at Catholic University of America

Luke Burgis, author of the best-selling, Wanting, joins the Prosper cast to talk about his his journey through various business ventures in the "wellness" sector, how the influence of René Girard taught him to want better things for himself, and the importance of leadership in shaping desires. Join us to explore the concept of mimetic desire, the role of education in cultivating better wants, and the significance of having a solid sense of self in business.

Here are links to books or other resources we discuss during this episode.

Prosper Podcast is a production of the ⁠Ciocca Center for Principled Entrepreneurship⁠ at Catholic University of America

If you give to your church electronically, chances are you're using FaithDirect, the brainchild of today's guest, serial entrepreneur ⁠Brian Walsh⁠. Learn from Brian how his being chronically late for mass led to an innovation that probably saved many parishes during the pandemic. You'll also hear the importance of a person-centered value proposition, the role of persistence and grit in entrepreneurship, and how to overcome resistance in a particular target market.

Prosper Podcast is a production of the ⁠Ciocca Center for Principled Entrepreneurship⁠ at Catholic University of America

"Jesus loves profit." That's Fr. Bob Gahl's challenge to Christians at work in the secular or religious spheres. Join us as we unpack what he means by this provocative premise! You'll also hear what Fr. Bob brought from an early career in Silicon Valley to his priesthood and how those who serve the Church can shift from a "maintenance" to a "mission" mode.

Church Management Programs at Catholic University of America's Business School

Alasdair MacIntyre is particularly well known for his book After Virtue.

Fr. Robert Gahl, PhD is director of Church Management Programs at the Busch School of Business at Catholic University of America. He directs the Master in Ecclesiastical Administration and Management or (MEAM). A native of Milwaukee Wisconsin, he completed his bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering at Washington University in St. Louis and worked in Silicon Valley with robotic software before pursuing the priesthood. He was ordained to the diaconate by Blessed Alvaro del Portillo and to the priesthood by St. John Paul II (1992).

Pope St. John Paul II defined poverty as exclusion from circles of exchange. Join us as Andreas Widmer and his co-hosts explore what he meant and champion enterprise as more sustainable and long-term solution for poverty and other social problems than direct charity. Topics include repenting of our learned condescension towards the poor, the role of small & medium enterprises (SMEs) in powering economic growth, and "the fortune at the bottom of the pyramid."

Andreas refers to C.K. Prahalad and his book, The Fortune at the Bottom of the Pyramid;

You might enjoy this short video on the importance of small businesses for the economy;

enroll in our free video course, The Gospel of Work.

Why is your business not taking off as hoped? Could it be that you're not listening carefully to your target audience? Join us as we explore how to find the right problem to solve, how to continually challenge your own assumptions, why it's important to invert the hierarchy to get useable feedback, and the surprising power of a two-word question: so what?

Find The Art of Principled Entrepreneurship at Andreas-Widmer.com

The Gospel of Work free video course;

It's commonly said the best workplaces are "like family." But is that a helpful aspiration or a category mistake? Join Andreas, Rebecca, and Jon as they explore what we mean when we say business is like a family and the possible dangers of thinking so.

This episode refers to an article by Juan Fernandez in Inc Magazine.

You'll also hear us mention our Family Business Consortium, which is free to join.

If you haven't already, check out our free 8-part video series, The Gospel of Work.

Click here to learn more about the work of the Ciocca Center for Principled Entrepreneurship.