I Matter and the Work That I Do Matter

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I think on the one hand, if we do work that really genuinely is deeply meaningful to us, it can be a powerful. But if we don't, you know, it can also be this double negative that kind of just really takes us down. We derive our own sense of meaning just as a human being from the thing that we do rather than saying, do I have meaning just because of the simple fact of my existence? So in a leadership role, of course, we're hiring people with less hope. Hope levels change the school system. Hope levelsChange the way people parent or the way they partner with their significant other. These are all huge impacts that we're having every day

Imagine, being in your 20s, fresh out of washing dishes at a local restaurant, borrowing just enough money to open a tiny, local deli with a friend who shared your passion for food, community, and business? Now, imagine that, decades later, that single decision would profoundly change the lives of not just thousands of regular customers, but millions of people, around the world?

What my guest today, Ari Weinzwieg, didn’t realize, when starting Zingerman’s Deli with a $20,000 loan from the bank, and a degree in Russian History from the University of Michigan, was that he was seeding a revolution. Actually, in hindsight, maybe he did. Now 17 companies later and sitting as the CEO and co-founding partner of Zingerman's Community of Businesses, Ari sees commerce as an engine of impact, expression and service that changes people’s lives.

Ari and his ideas have set off a global ripple of compassion, dignity, imagination, and aliveness in the world of business, inviting people to reimagine a profoundly different, radically expansive and inclusive way of defining success. Named by Inc Magazine as one of "The World's 10 Top CEOs," he’s forging a new way in business that rejects the norm and is grounded in purposeful vision, passion, and anarchy theory. He's written extensively about the values and beliefs that have kept the now iconic Zingerman's Delicatessen, his first business venture, afloat and successful for over 40 years in weekly newsletters and the numerous books he's authored, such as A Lapsed Anarchist's Approach to the Power of Beliefs and A Lapsed Anarchist's Approach to Managing Ourselves.

In our chat today, Ari shares some of the brilliant happenings inside his head, ranging from the ways we can use history to guide us in work, life, and business today, a reclamation of anarchy as a tool for impact and equality, Ari’s natural laws of business and the importance of being in harmony with nature, the power of visioning, and the steps you can take to cast your own life and world-changing vision. This isn’t just about business, it’s about life.

You can find Ari Weinzweig at: Website | Instagram

If you LOVED this episode you’ll also love the conversations we had with Donna Carpenter about how she and her husband, Jake, built Burton into not just a snowboard giant, but also a workplace that champions humanity.

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