Interview with Bill Perkins, Keynote Speaker at the 15th Annual Bigelow Forum

On the Positive Enterprise Value Podcast, I get a chance to interview some of the most amazing and interesting Entrepreneur Owner-Managers (EOMs) on the planet and deconstruct some of their entrepreneurial journey…from disrupting their industries to being a game changer in their industries to potentially having a capital gain and using the liquidity from that to fuel the next chapters of their lives. Today you will hear my interview with Bill Perkins. Bill is a well-known energy trader who graduated from the University of Iowa with an electrical engineering degree, who quickly pivoted and joined New York Mercantile Exchange as an energy trader. Over the next 10 to 15 years, he worked and played in that world causing him to have certain experiences that changed his views on the world. His views and learnings from that time are reflected in his book, which is called Die with Zero. A book I love but hate the title of because I find it to be limiting in conveying what the book is all about….so much more than just dying with zero. My friend Ed Wilson humorously suggested that the book be titled “Die with Zero Regrets.” Bill was the featured speaker at the 2024 Bigelow Forum, where we brought together about 100 EOMs and their spouses from across the country to think about some of the themes in Die with Zero and challenge our current thinking. Some of the themes from Die with Zero, include for example, as you accumulate value in your life, the question of why? Are you over saving? When do you share some of this with your philanthropic causes or with your children? Are you trying to be your own insurance company by saving for your mortality or saving for your longevity? Bill was extremely provocative at the Bigelow Forum. We had a great time both hearing his keynote to us for about an hour as well as the live podcast interview done just after his talk, which is really a series of questions from the audience that I know you're going to love. So, without any further ado I hope you enjoy Bill Perkins as much as I do.