“Do not pray for an easy life, pray for the strength to endure a difficult one."

— Bruce Lee

Well, guess who I got to chat about life with?

Recently I had the pleasure of having a conversation with the big guy himself, CEO of Accurate Productions, Inc., Ben Herman. Most of us know him as DJ Muziqlement. What I have to say next might blow your mind, so you might want to sit down. Ben and I ACTUALLY had a conversation on the phone. Crazy, right? Who does that anymore? Well, we did, for almost 3 hours!

When it comes to life, passion and purpose, Ben has got some bars! And you can really hear the excitement in his voice when he talks about business and his love for helping others. Though I have some years on Ben, I have always admired him when it comes to business and entrepreneurship. He is a man beyond his years.

Ben has shared his story briefly with me before, but why should I be the only lucky one to hear it? As the new content writer for Accurate Productions, I thought it would be a good idea to give the people some insight about the man behind the curtain DJ tables.

Ben never had the chance to meet his biological parents. He was adopted six days after being born. Unfortunately, his adopted parents split up. His mom took full custody of him and his sister, and made their way across the North Atlantic Ocean to Germany. Ben did mention that this was the affluent side of the family. For the next seven years, Ben would grow up here.

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On the brink of becoming a teenager, Ben moved back to the states to live with his father in Humboldt County, California. Things were very different on this side of the pond for Ben. His father lived in a double wide trailer in a trailer park. Ben seemed to vividly remember his father building a room for him out of PVC piping. His room and the living room were the same space. A curtain was the only thing separating the spaces. Ben would have a hard time falling asleep at night because of the loud television in the living room/his room.

As the lump in my throat began to make itself present, Ben continued to tell me how embarrassed he felt whenever he would get dropped off at school. While chuckling, he asked if I remembered what a VW Rabbit looked like. I giggled as I answered, ” Yes.” I was a teenager once and I remember how embarrassing it would feel to even be associated with one’s parents, regardless of the looks of the family car. As I mentioned earlier, things were very different for Ben in the states.

Ben shared with me that his father was verbally abusive. The lump in my throat was now joined by the knot in my stomach at this point in our conversation. Ben remembers his dad being an angry man. He mentioned that it was his mom who really wanted to adopt a baby. Not so much his dad. He could sense this in the way his dad treated him. He told me it was hard as a young teenager to not believe the things his dad would say to him in efforts to break him down.

Ben’s world was very different at school. Ben knew how to make it seem like his life was pretty awesome. He wore nice clothes and knew how to get people to like him too. Ben began to tell me about his Junior High School days and how he became infected with the DJ bug. Ben was very much into break dancing and Hip- Hop back then and had a big time love for music. He told me he saw a DJ at the Blue Lake Roller Rink (yes, the one that smells like dirty socks) playing some Hip- Hop and how he really dug the social aspect of it. It seemed like the perfect fit for Ben. The whole time I’m thinking, “And the stars align!”

Ben was very honest and said it wasn’t only the music that inspired him, but the ladies too. By the age of 15, in his freshman year in high school, Ben knew exactly what he wanted to do. He had done a couple gigs and the love for his favorite element of Hip-Hop was only growing stronger.

At the age of 16, he had connected with a friend from his affluent side of the family who was a real estate agent. She put Ben on to Robert Kiyosaki’s book, Rich Dad, Poor Dad. Ben then became inspired to become a business man and start his own DJ company. He found himself in Borders book store quite a bit, looking for books on how to start a business. As long as I have known Ben, he has always had the drive to learn, learn, learn!

I found it interesting that Ben didn’t graduate high school. The Rich Dad in Robert Kiyosaki’s, book didn’t make it past the eighth grade. Ben knew what he wanted to do in life and also knew that the curriculum being taught would not help him get to where he was trying to go.

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Ben, being the strategist that he is, knew that in order to be able to get away with working on his own curriculum in high school, he would have to build a rapport with one of the top dogs in charge. So, that is what he did. Though many students, shy’d away from any kind of conversation with the vice principal, Ben did the exact opposite. He greeted him daily and always asked how his day was going. This would later play into Ben’s favor.

Out of respect for his father, Ben still attended school, but on his own terms. He quietly sat in the back of his classes, studying how to become a successful businessman and was always respectful to the teachers. Ben mentioned that it wasn’t always easy choosing to not fall in line with the sheep. Many of his classmates made fun of him for wanting to be a DJ, which believe it or not, was not the cool thing to do at the time. Ironically, Dj’s are considered rockstars now. Ben just turned a cheek and kept believing in himself and I commend him for doing so.

Reflecting on Ben’s story, it is clear to see that all his struggles with his Dad and growing up in a trailer park led him to become the person he is now. He is a loving husband and father, and without doubt a successful business man. He thrives not only in business, but on helping others become successful too, including myself.

People gravitate to Ben because of his infectious positive attitude and compassionate ways. Ben is a man who chose to write his own story and continues to inspire others to do the same. My life, and I know others who are close to Ben would say the same, is much better because Ben is a part of it. I am proud of him for flipping his negatives into positives. Most of all, I am proud to call him a friend. Thank you, Big Guy, for believing in yourself. Many people’s lives are blessed because you chose to do so. 

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Written by Positively James

Tagged: Chief Executive Officer, Inspiration, Biography