Silas Mahner joins the BeatiDudes for a conversation about Catholic entrepreneurship, vocation, risk, surrender, and what it means to build as a co-creator with God. Silas is the founder of Earth Search, a recruitment consultancy serving clean technology companies, and the creator of Catholic Founders, a podcast and Substack exploring how faith shapes the work of founders and builders. Alongside Paul Kolker, Nick Bezner, and Jeff Schiefelbein, Silas reflects on the deeper purpose of business, the danger of chasing success for its own sake, and the invitation to discern the specific track God has laid out for each person.
Silas shares how growing up in the middle of nowhere Wisconsin, as the oldest of eight in a large Catholic family, shaped his view of work, freedom, and entrepreneurship. Inspired by his father’s cabinet shop, his family’s maple syrup operation, and the rhythms of Catholic life, Silas began to see business as something far more meaningful than profit. For him, entrepreneurship is not only about starting companies. It is about learning to cooperate with God’s creative work, steward resources well, serve others, and stay open to the Holy Spirit’s direction.
The BeatiDudes dig into the tension between planning and surrender, ambition and prudence, and risk and responsibility. Silas talks about the challenge of discerning when God is calling a founder to take a leap and when the more faithful move is to remain steady for the sake of family and responsibility. The conversation also explores failure, resilience, founder dinners, the Catholic community, and how hard moments become mile markers of growth. As usual, the Tiny Table keeps things lively with maple-syrup memories, personality-test chaos, Catholic-business reflections, and just enough nonsense to prove that the Holy Spirit can work through almost anything.
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