I Went to the Bahamas to Make MILLIONS… and Ended Up a RABBI Instead!

I had made a gross over a million dollars. >> [music] >> You know, to to have have made over a million dollars by the time you're less than 25 [music] years old. So, it hit me clear as day. This cannot be what I'm here for. Empty. >> [music] >> Empty. And and each day just ended with with the same type of sadness, unfulfilled sadness. [music] And so, many people live this tragedy of life leaving their potential unfulfilled. I've been around the block. My I started off in um Brooklyn, grew up in Miami. [music] When I went to Paradise Island to make my millions, and of course live in paradise. My dream was to have this new fancy car was in the Batman movie, Dodge Viper. >> Mhm. >> Now, you're going to say, "It's Hawk, that's such a silly dream." It should have been for a Lamborghini, and I agree with you. Looking back, I definitely regret that my dream was to have that Dodge Viper because at the end of the day, nothing tops the Lamborghini. And I'm sure they made up a new car today that maybe does top the Lamborghini. But my dream was to make millions and enjoy the finer things in life, which really mean toys. You know, "He who dies with the most toys wins" was a famous shirt like like a sticker that I remember seeing. And it's funny, you know, when you finally stop for a moment and ask yourself, "Oh yeah, what does he really win?" He wins the oldest spoiled baby game. That's what he wins. So, [clears throat] we got to grow up. And we got to realize what life is really all about. And that's the blessing I had in that turning point in my life when I was about 20 years old and was in in in family business. I had made a gross over a million dollars. >> Wow. >> You know, to to have have made over a million dollars by the time you're less than 25 years old. So, it hit me clear as day. This cannot be what I'm here for. Empty. Empty. And and each day They ended with with the same type of sadness, unfulfilled sadness. When potential goes unfulfilled, that's a tragedy. A person that's only capable of of of accomplishing so much shouldn't be upset or depressed with himself cuz he's doing the best that God gave him the abilities to do. But when you have so much potential and that goes unfulfilled, that's a tragedy. And so many people live this tragedy of life leaving their potential unfulfilled. I got into a business that was a lot involved a lot of hustling and that it wasn't all so kosher. Um and it wasn't and it was about two things, my business practices that led me to grow so much money was basically me and money, the two M's, [clears throat] money and me. All my life was about was more money and and feeding me. And then I realized that I watched movies and I love movies and sometimes the the grandness and the and the the the dreams within those movies are so inspiring and they they almost we we live vicariously through these great movies that we watch. Forrest [clears throat] Gump is a good example of the unbelievable experience when you watch such a movie. And I said, "You know, if if I would watch myself in a movie, I would think he was a jerk." >> Honestly, how did you come to think about that? What made you think about that? Like was it just one day you woke up and you had a hard day or >> the little bit of help I had was two things. Number one is I had I had gone to a Jewish camp when I was a kid. I was not religious but my family is not religious. The Jewish camp wasn't a religious camp and of course this is going to sound so Jewish because it just is. They offered my parents an opportunity to send us >> for free >> for free. >> Oh. >> Of course. And my my parents were like, "Can we sign them up for multiple years?" And we did go for multiple years and was the most unbelievable seeds were planted in that experience to learn about God, to learn about goodness. And again, it all went on the back shelf when I >> You were a kid when this happened but >> Yeah, between the age of 6 and 12. And it all was back shelved. I all went in and and I went to the things, you know, sports, being strong, being cool, girls, money. It that that took the the front stage, but somewhere inside there was a nagging and a pulling that, you know, and and I was never really settled. >> So, your neshama was awakened a little bit and >> and so and then it exploded in the Bahamas. Why but the Bahamas on Paradise Island? Because I met a man named Quincy. >> Mhm. >> A black Bohemian, die hard Christian, absolute believer in our brother. And we we we worked and we after work we had some pina coladas and and chilled together. You know what I mean with the pina coladas. >> And so, we were talking and, you know, he told me about his mindset about that God is center in his mind and in his life and I was like, wow. I remember being that person. >> He was a Christian. >> Yeah, I mean, look, we we can get into the details and and I would love to meet him again and see where he's at. But uh >> He got you thinking about God >> was he he took me back. Took me back to that six-year-old, eight-year-old boy that was pure and and and and and innocent. >> Wow. >> And that was beautiful to feel for a moment, you know, and I realized that's really the person I I I loved being. >> Wow. >> I I I woke up one morning and I just felt different. Um maybe the night before I had I had prayed. I hadn't prayed in many many many years. I just kind of like inner internal conversation with God saying, you know, if I was watching a movie me of a movie of myself, I wouldn't like the guy so much. And I remembered my youth when I when I was exposed to to a little bit of a better type of value system of life, you know, the following the Torah and and being a good person, an honest person, believing in God. And I realized, hey, where did I where did I go from there? And so, thank God, you know, sometimes you got to just be just you got to go all in and I I woke up the next day and said, "If I'm in God's world and I matter, then so does the person in front of me matter." And I I decided on the spot from now on I'm not going to be about me and money. I'm going to be about person in front of me. And if he's happy and I'm happy, then that's that's a successful interaction. If I'm happy and he's not happy because I took everything I could from him, that's not making anybody happy in the end. And so I started realizing that I have to treat my fellow human being with the love and respect that I believe God has for me because he obviously if he has respect and love for me and created me, then that goes for everybody. >> Was this philosophical or was it emotional? Meaning were you like thinking like mindset like this is not right or was this more like emotional? You need more of that. You feel like you need God in your life. >> So I think like any good creative person, I used to want to I was I used to write write movie scripts and want to make wanted to tell stories and make movies. I think it's you got to have a heart and you got to have a brains. Brains without a heart is is cold and and and look what evils you can reach. And a heart without any brains, [laughter] you know, what can you do? You You know where you're going with all that heart. So So you got to have a brain and and you got to have a heart. And together they they they make magic in this world. And I I think the two of them together, you know, gave me a new direction in life. >> Wow. That's amazing. But there you have it. That's That's uh That's the story of a person who was in the the chaos in the darkness and felt empty and decided his life needs to change. Decided it's time to bring God into his come back where he belongs. >> It started a journey that years later led me to walk into a yeshiva. 25 years old. I I This is literally I did not know that the word "a buyit" in Hebrew meant "in the house." 25 years old. I I barely could read. But but something what along the lines of what you were saying. When you try to fill yourself up with things and you keep trying and trying and you you you you're still empty, at some point you you you must realize you know you cannot ever be satisfied with an empty box. I will say [music] this. You could climb Mount Everest but then [music] you end up right back on ground level and so you have to be ready to climb all over again and that's [music] really interesting about life and about that high point I reached is you can't hold on to that moment forever. That moment is dead and if you stay [music] with that moment then you're dead with it. You have to continue to recreate yourself every day >> [music] >> in the new circumstances you find and you'll find yourself down. I mean don't think because [music] a person got woken up he stays woken up. You know I went through hard times, difficult times, sad times, depressive times >> [music] >> and you constantly just have to have that in the back of your mind as a as a strength knowing [music] that you're not alone, you're never alone. Hashem is with you in this world. >> [music]