Making Billions: Lessons Learned From the King of the Thrill Pill Cult – Shaahin Cheyene : 1110
The Human Upgrade with Dave Asprey
Dave Asprey
4.6 • 7.3K Ratings
🗓️ 28 November 2023
⏱️ 73 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
Today’s guest is nothing short of a modern-day Willy Wonka for Generation X. He built a billion-dollar ecstasy business in the '90s and did not end up behind bars. That's a story you've got to hear. Our guest today, Shaahin Cheyene, not only dabbled in the wild world of herbal ecstasy but also managed to stay out of trouble despite being investigated by seven attorney generals. And get this, he wasn't even 18 when he pulled off these daring feats.
Shaahin's story doesn't stop there. Since those days, he's become an Amazon expert, successfully selling nootropics and a variety of other products on the platform. He's also a filmmaker and author of the book, “Billion: How I Became the King of the Thrill Pill Cult.”
From Fleeing Iran at the age of five to being homeless and living out of his car, Shaahin's journey is nothing short of remarkable. It's safe to say he's one of the most interesting individuals I've had the pleasure of interviewing.
We dive into Shaahin's captivating journey, exploring his transformation from a young criminal to a thriving entrepreneur. You’ll also learn about what went into his groundbreaking herbal ecstasy formula and how he managed to get his business off the ground. Along the way, we discuss the challenges of navigating the bureaucracy of big government, the importance of seeking help when needed, and the valuable lessons Shaahin learned from building and eventually exiting his herbal ecstasy empire.
We also delve into how he managed to run a nine-figure company selling on Amazon, the mindset benefits of Brazilian jiu-jitsu training, the power of curating ideas, and how you can strategically leverage podcasts as an entrepreneur. Join us on a ride you won't want to miss.
(01:47) How Shaahin Became the King of the Thrill Pill Cult
(07:36) Formulating Herbal Ecstasy & Building a Million-Dollar Business
(16:34) Navigating the Bureaucracy of Big Government
(28:04) Pro Tip for Entrepreneurs: Why It’s Important To Ask for Help
(32:09) What Cheyene Learned From Building & Exiting His Business
(37:29) What To Do When You Make Your First Million
(39:21) Scaling a 9-Figure Company Selling on Amazon
(45:05) Lessons From Martial Arts & Our Bets on Musk vs Zuckerberg
(54:03) The Tactical Advantage of Podcasting & Being a Curator of Ideas
(01:03:30) Media Training 101
Resources
Dave Asprey’s NEW Book ‘Smarter Not Harder’ is out now: https://daveasprey.com/books
Website: shaahincheyenne.com
PodcastCola: podcastcola.com
Instagram: @shaahincheyene
Podcast: Business Story of the Week
LinkedIn: Shaahin Cheyene
The Human Upgrade is produced by Crate Media.
See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | You know I'm really selective about the supplements I use and I take a lot of them and one of the brands I keep coming back to again and again is buy optimizers. |
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| 0:56.9 | savings and enjoy how you're gonna feel |
| 1:00.9 | you're listening to the human upgrade with Dave Asprey. |
| 1:04.0 | Formerly, Bulletproof Radio. You're listening to the human upgrade with Dave Asprey. |
| 1:20.0 | This is a live in personperson show which I absolutely prefer over Zoom or remote but |
| 1:28.3 | guests are people that you want to hear from oftentimes aren't where I am and vice versa with good microphones and all. |
| 1:35.3 | So thanks for showing up in the same city, same time as me, Shane. |
| 1:39.6 | Yeah, great to see. I always find face to face is better. |
| 1:42.2 | Yeah, it's just way more fun. So what are we going to talk about? What are you going to learn today? Well, how about we talk with the willy Wanca of Generation X? That's a name I think you've earned, building a billion dollar |
| 1:56.9 | ecstasy business and not going to jail for it. |
| 2:02.0 | Creating herbal ecstasy being investigated by seven attorney generals and not going to |
... |
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