Is work a curse, a burden… or a gift from Hashem?

In this solo episode, we go into the Netziv on Parshas Bereishis and pull out five big career ideas for Bnei Torah in the workforce.

1. Is Work a Curse?
2. Did God Plan on Creating Bahlabatim?
3. How do I handle Relationships with Secular Collagues?
4. Is it Possible to be Spiritual at Work?
5. Can I Live a Life of Luxury?

If this kind of Torah-first career talk speaks to you, share the episode, leave a comment on Spotify or Apple, or join the Shtark Tank WhatsApp chevra and keep the conversation going.

100th episode. World-class Torah educator. All your burning questions.

To mark our 100th episode, Rav Aryeh Lebowitz joins Shtark Tank for a wide-ranging Q&A on what it really means to be a Ben Torah in the workforce.

We talk about:

• “You’re never going to be Rav Schachter… and that’s okay” – setting healthy goals in learning

• Gadol biographies, ambition, and why you’re not supposed to be the Chafetz Chaim

• How to grow in learning when you’re working full time and raising a family

• Stress and guilt: when “I’m not learning enough” is healthy – and when it’s toxic

• Who should go into chinuch and rabbanus… and who should not

• Aliyah, parnassah, and the real math of teaching in Eretz Yisrael

• Minyan, mincha at work, and missing davening for family

• Phones, attention spans, and why Rav Aryeh deleted Twitter

It’s a packed, honest conversation with one of the most listened-to Torah teachers in the world – and a fitting way to celebrate 100 episodes of Shtark Tank.

If this episode helped you, the best “100th episode gift” you can give is simple: follow the show, leave a 5-star rating, and share it with one friend who’s trying to balance Torah, work, and family.

As we mark the yahrzeit of Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks, we’re remembering him through the eyes of two working Bnei Torah who knew him personally — not as a public icon, but as a mentor, a mensch, and a man of deep humility.

Joe Hyams spent his late teens on Rabbi Sacks security team. driving him to events across London and making sure he was safe. From the front seat, he saw the balance between majesty and modesty. “He carried himself with a regal sense of presence — yet he’d be the one holding the door open for you.” Joe describes the long, quiet drives before speeches, the relaxed warmth afterward, and how those moments shaped his own path in Torah, family, and career.

David Frei, a London lawyer and communal leader, became one of Rabbi Sacks’ trusted editors. He saw the scholar behind the sermons — “a brilliant writer and a brilliant orator,” who read a new book every night and took feedback with humility. David recalls those tense early-2000s years and how Rabbi Sacks emerged stronger, turning personal trials into a wider moral voice for faith and reason.

Together, their memories reveal a side of Rabbi Sacks rarely seen — deeply human, endlessly curious, and quietly transformative.

Select Quotes:

“He could speak to you without speaking. His smile was sharp love — piercing, serious, and full of warmth all at once.”

“He showed that Torah, integrity, and professional success aren’t separate worlds — they can and should live together.”

Last week’s episode hit a nerve.
Some listeners loved it. Others were really bothered by it.

So for the first time ever, we’re doing a feedback episode — bringing back Rav Yehuda Halpert to go deeper on the toughest questions you raised.
Is the culture of Big Law really compatible with Torah values?
What does it take to survive — or grow — spiritually in that world?
And how do we weigh ambition, family, and avodas Hashem when the hours never end?

In this follow-up:

• Years 1–3: the “conveyor belt” and why control is limited

• When to pivot — and how to choose a practice that protects Shabbos

• The billable-hour trap and what it does to your mind

• Can you ever “limit your hours” and still advance?

• Real talk on money, promotions, and gam zu l’tovah

• Shabbos at the firm: teamwork, gratitude, and derech eretz

• Marbitz Torah without a title — from shiurim to writing

• Harsh listener feedback: “For what are these costs worth paying?”

• Hashkafic tension: excellence vs. moderation

• Marriage, parenting, and faith when energy and time are scarce

If you appreciate these kinds of raw, honest conversations, follow Shtark Tank and leave a 5-star review — it helps others find the show and keeps these dialogues going.

You don’t have to love your job—but you can’t hate it.
Rabbi Yehuda Halpert (shul rabbi, Big Law attorney, author) joins Shtark Tank to talk straight about Torah life inside a 90-hour week, setting real standards, and why reassessing is different than slipping.

What You'll Hear

• How a Ben Torah can thrive in Big Law without losing the plot

• “Slipping vs. reassessing” — setting honest standards after yeshiva

• The Mincha hack that anchors your day (and your network)

• Peer pressure at the office: values, money, and role models

• Balancing a Shabbos-only pulpit with a full-time firm role

• Lessons from COVID that helped after Oct 7

• Career calling vs. community calling: picking your tafkid

  
  

Guest Bio

Rabbi Yehuda Halpert — shul rabbi in Teaneck, Big Law lawyer, and author of Speaking to an Empty Shul: Timeless Lessons from Unprecedented Times.

Quick Takeaways

• Build a system that works with your schedule

• Guard your company — work with good people

• Use Mincha as a daily reset and natural networking moment

• Review your standards every 6–12 months; adjust with intent

• • You can be excellent at your craft and strong in your values

  
  

  Did you enjoy this episode?

• Follow Shtark Tank on Spotify and rate the show (it really helps).

• Share this episode with a friend

• Join the Shtark Tank WhatsApp group for episode drops and Q&A (link in show notes).

With tremendous historical events unfolding, I couldn’t record a regular episode.
This moment demanded more than another interview, it called for guidance and clarity.

What does this new chapter in our history mean?
What is our role right now?
How do we balance the whirlwind of emotions — gratitude, pain, pride, and confusion — that we’re all feeling?

I was grateful that Rav Moshe Taragin agreed to join me once again to help unpack these questions.
There’s truly no one who combines such deep Torah knowledge with historical awareness and a living connection to Am Yisrael.

Together, we explore how to:

• Hold joy and grief at the same time

• Express real hakaras hatov — to Hashem, to soldiers, to each other

• See the hand of Hashem in political and military reality

• Understand what this nes demands of us

A special, timely conversation for anyone trying to make sense of this historic moment.

Click here to order Rabbi Taragin’s books including: Reclaiming Redemption: Demystifying the Maze of Jewish History and To be holy, but human- Reflections upon my Rebbe, Harav Yehuda Amital

As we prepare for Yom Kippur, we speak with Joseph Gitler about his son-in-law, David Schwartz HY”D—a ben Torah, law student, and IDF reservist in Handasah Kravit (combat engineering) who fell in Khan Younis on January 8, 2024 alongside his chavrusa Yakir Hexter HY”D.

Joseph shares how David wove together strong learning with real-world duty, his years in Gush Etzion, his time at Reichman University law school, his gift for connecting across communities, and what it means to mourn while still choosing life and responsibility. We also hear about ongoing projects in David’s memory and the weekly Divrei Torah initiative that now reaches thousands.

Links

• ⁠To join the David Schwartz Divrei Torah chat⁠
• ⁠To watch the video from the Azkara⁠

Highlights

• Ben Torah in the world: David’s learning (Kli Yakar chavrusas, steady seder) and his drive to serve—both in the IDF and potentially in public service.

• Bridging worlds: Deep ties across communities (yeshiva, Chassidus, secular campus). Seeking dialogue without blurring values.

• Reichman law school: Culture shock, principled debate during the judicial protests, and the value of hearing people who think differently.

• Army service: Training, multiple rotations in Gaza with Tzanhanim commandos; pride in the unit’s work despite the dangers.

• January 8, 2024: The incident in Khan Younis; community and family response; what shiva looked like for parents of the almanah.

• National resilience: “The whole country has PTSD.” Practical takeaways: watch your friends and kids; speak up when you see someone struggling; get help involved.

• Living memory: A sefer of David’s Torah (written in yeshiva), a growing weekly parsha sheet in Hebrew and English, shul/Beit Midrash renovations, and a loans fund for farmers and soldiers—projects that carry his light forward.

  
  

  
  

During Elul last year, we had one of our most powerful episodes. We spoke with Rav Moshe Taragin about Teshuva, spiritual growth and the Yamim Noraim experience.

Whether or not you listened the first time around, its worthwhile to revisit as we prepare for the Yamim Noraim.

How do we define success as Bnei Torah in the workforce?

I asked Rav Dovid Lichtenstein, who is a talmid chochom and real estate executive. We spoke about defining success in learning, at work, and in our relationship with technology.

Rav Dovid's ideas are firmly grounded in Torah sources, but are also extremely practical.

Moshe Chaim started out as a successful Kollel yungerman. But soon after he transitioned to the workforce, he found himself in a therapists office, as his professional struggles had already started to spill over in to his marriage, emotional health, and other areas.

This true story (with names changed) is the case study that Rabbi Dr. Yosef Sokol uses to introduce his book 'Becoming Godly'. The book combines Machshava from the Ramchal and others, along with psycholgy, to give a framework for religous growth.

We spoke about having a healthy relationship with the past, as a neccesssary condition for building a better future. We also spoke about finding meaning at work, the role of labels, and some practical tips ahead of the Yamim Noraim.

Please help us grow the show by leaving a 5-star review and hitting the subscribe button. Thanks!

Guest Bio

Rabbi Dr. Yosef Sokol (credentials) is a licensed clinical psychologist, professor at Touro University, and VA research scientist specializing in suicide prevention and recovery. He developed Continuous Identity Cognitive Therapy (CI-CT), an innovative approach that supports healing and recovery from suicide attempts and ideation. He has numerous peer reviewed publications and leads major research grants from the VA and American Foundation for Suicide Prevention. Dr. Sokol earned his PhD from Hofstra University, received semichah from Yeshivas Bais Yosef Novardok, and is the author of Becoming Godly: Integrating Torah and Psychology to Guide Us in Emulating Hashem. He is dedicated to bringing recovery-oriented, identity-focused approaches to healing individuals struggling with suicide.