We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Raf Robinson a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Hi Raf, thanks for sharing your insights with our community today. Part of your success, no doubt, is due to your work ethic and so we’d love if you could open up about where you got your work ethic from?
I get my work ethic from my parents and grandparents. Growing up, I watched both my parents and my grandparents work hard to make ends meet and try to provide better opportunities in life than what they were afforded. Because of this example, I was often left to fend for myself when it came to learning how to do things. I realized that what they could give me was limited, so I had to work hard to go for what I wanted in life. Playing sports was a big part of developing my own work ethic. I was usually one of the smallest players on the field, so I had to work harder than everyone else to become a better athlete and compete on a high level.
Thanks, so before we move on maybe you can share a bit more about yourself?
My passion is taking ideas and bringing them to life as a business. I believe that we were born to create. Sometimes I’m the one with the idea to birth, but other times I’ve been the support role in helping others bring their ideas to fruition. My first business was the Firehouse Lounge in downtown Austin, TX in 2003. I loved the nightlife scene in many other metropolitan cities and found that there was a gap in the underground dj scene in Austin, I wanted to create a place where dj’s could showcase their talents in an upscale environment that wasn’t bougie. One of our values was to treat everyone like a VIP. After having success in the nightlife scene, I began partnering with other creative folks to help bring some other businesses to life. Some of the brands I have enjoyed working with included Zilker Brewing, Irie Bean Coffee Bar, and SLAB BBQ & BEER. A few years ago, I got to partner with my wife and some friends on a retreat space in Dripping Springs called The Nature Haus. Most recently, I’ve been working with a company in the mycology space. Fallen Oak Mycology is looking to be a big player in the mushroom world and help find solutions to many of the issues facing our environment and how we do life on this planet. What I have realized about all the ventures that I have been a part of is that I love serving people and bringing a little love and joy into the world. I think much of the success lies in the fact that my mission is to serve. I definitely enjoy making money, but the true reward is in the lives we get to impact through food, drink, music or experiences.
Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?
Grit, humility and kindness have been a big part of my journey. The life of an entrepreneur is hard and you have to have grit to get through the challenges that you will surely face. Humility has been key in knowing that I cannot do this on my own. I have looked to peers, mentors and anyone who has some wisdom to share along the way. Kindness is probably not one of the qualities that ranks very high on the list for go getters, but it has certainly been huge in my journey. A little kindness goes a long way, and sometimes you don’t experience the direct impact, but I’ve been able to get things done in difficult situations just by being kind. People will be more apt to help you on your journey if you are just a kind person.
What do you do when you feel overwhelmed? Any advice or strategies?
The last few years, since COVID, ushered in a whole new level of stress for me that I had not experienced before. In the past, I usually had confidence that my grit could carry me through just about any hardships, and this was mostly true. I’ve been faced with situations over the last few years that were so overwhelming and seemed like grit would not get me through. I have a pretty strong faith in God and have had to really press into that faith in recent years. After a very scary health incident, I realized that I could not just power through some of the stress I was dealing with (or not dealing with really). I’ve had to take a step back and reset priorities, pray, meditate, exercise, process with my wife and mentors, and ultimately accept that some things are just out of my control. This is a hard practice for someone who is pretty controlling.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.dopebbq.com , www.thenaturehaus.com
- Instagram: @slabbbq @thenaturehaus
- Linkedin: Raf Robinson
- Youtube: @slabbbq
