Interview with Robert Tuchman, author of "Young Guns"

About the Author

When Robert Tuchman graduated from Boston University, Tuchman was quickly forced to abandon his dream of becoming a sports reporter. Applications to sports producers across the country were ignored and eventually he accepted a position as an investment advisor at Lehman Brothers in New York.

Still wanting to break into the sports industry, he joined Sports Profiles after reading about them in Entrepreneur magazine, working out of his apartment selling sports magazine advertisements. Quickly realizing that everyone to whom he sold ads wanted the perks (tickets to games or luxury trips to events) more then the ads, he decided to start a business that catered to this niche called Tuchman Sports Enterprises (TSE).

Within two years of working out of that tiny one-bedroom Upper East Side apartment, with one phone and a fax machine, his company was named to the annual Inc. 500 list of America´s fastest growing privately held companies and as one of the top 100 promotion agencies by Promo Magazine. He started TSE with no money and no investors and ended up selling it in a ten figure equity deal to Premiere Global Sports. Last year PGS earned over $70 million dollars in sales. Robert Tuchman now serves as President of that division, still guiding his company in its new form.

He writes a monthly column for Entrepreneur.com. He also writes for Incentive magazine, an industry magazine for incentive and meeting planners. He is the author of The 100 Sporting Events You Must See Live, a sports travel book as well as Young Guns, The Fearless Entrepreneurs Guide To Chasing Your Dreams and Breaking Out on Your Own. His articles have appeared in ESPN.com and Sports Business Journal.

A favorite commentator on the sports industry, you may have seen him recently discussing sports business on "Anderson Cooper 360" or the "CBS Morning News." A frequent guest on "Your World with Neil Cavuto," he has also appeared on CNN, the "CBS Morning News," BET, and has been featured in USA Today, the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, and Entrepreneur.

About the Book

Today´s graduates face the toughest job market in 10 years. Their peers only a few years older, who just started their careers, are now back on the job hunt with few prospects. There is a highly competitive pool of applicants for companies that aren´t hiring. What options do these bright, young, ambitious people have? To wait for the economy to recover and recruiters to come knocking? Or to take that ambition and passion and turn it into something tangible? Now is the time to become an entrepreneur-take that drive and start realizing your dreams.

In Young Guns: the Fearless Entrepreneur´s Guide to Chasing Your Dreams and Breaking out on Your Own, Robert Tuchman shows professionals that they can start and succeed in their own business with examples of many entrepreneurs under the age of 35. There is no better time to take a chance than when you´re youthful, bold and have very little to lose-and he knows from experience. When Robert Tuchman graduated from college, he was quickly forced to abandon his dream of becoming a sports writer. Eventually he accepted a position as a stockbroker trainee, but soon realized that he was completely unfulfilled in his new job. There had to be something better. Tired of working at a job with little prospect of advancement, he formed his own company, Tuchman Sports Enterprises (TSE), out of his apartment. Within two years of working out of that tiny one-bedroom Upper East Side apartment, with one phone and a fax machine, his company was named to the annual Inc. 500 list of America´s fastest growing privately held companies and as one of the top 100 promotion agencies by Promo Magazine. He started TSE with no money and no investors and ended up selling it for millions of dollars to a major firm. Last year TSE earned over $70 million dollars in sales.

I was lucky enough to interview the author. This is what he had to say:

Where are you from?

Edgemont a town in Westchester County New York. 12.5 miles from Yankee Stadium.

When and why did you begin writing? I always liked writing but in my 12th grade creative writing class there was a great teacher, Kathleen Williams Reilly, I just had so much fun making up humorous stories about my friends.

When did you first consider yourself a writer?

I really still don´t consider myself a writer. I would love to tell people I am a writer but it doesn´t pay the bills yet.

What inspired you to write your first book?

I had this great story I wanted to tell others which was about my journey of starting a business and everything I went through to make it successful, sharing my story and other stories just like mine for inspiration for people. The idea for my other book 100 sporting events you must see live came to me while writing this book.

Do you have a specific writing style?

I try to write like I would speak to someone which is all about being myself

How did you come up with the title?

I wanted it to be Young Fearless and Fed Up, but I guess the publisher thought it too negative so we changed it to Young Guns…..

Is there a message in your novel that you want readers to grasp?

Why not You? If I started a business around my passion and was successful, I know anyone can do it.

How much of the book is realistic?

All of it 100%

Are experiences based on someone you know, or events in your own life?

My own life as well as others who have went through similar things.

What books have most influenced your life most?

Oh so many!!! I love sports books, mainly non fiction about overcoming obstacles.

If you had to choose, which writer would you consider a mentor?

I wish I could write like Mitch Albom or John Feinstein or David Halberstam, those guys are the best.

What book are you reading now?

Don´t laugh, Tony Gonzalez, the Atlanta Falcons tight ends new book on nutrition. It was laying around my agents office. Also reading my second book on the kindle called A Colossal Failure of Common Sense about the Lehman Brothers failure.

Are there any new authors that have grasped your interest?

Yes, Kate Kelly, I read her book Street Fighters about the final 72 hours of Bear Stearns earlier this summer. I couldn´t put it down. I read her articles on the subject in the wall street journal earlier in the year and they were great as well. She is talented.

What are your current projects?

Working on 100 Greatest Rivalries of All Time as well some others.

Name one entity that you feel supported you outside of family members.

All my friends

Do you see writing as a career?

Only if I can become one of these writers that gets paid too much for writing. That would be fun. I look at writing as my creative outlet that keeps life interesting.

What do you think makes a good story?

There are so many good stories. I love human interest stories that people can relate to. In the end there are no boring subjects, just boring writers. I read that in the back of my English class in tenth grade, it was on the wall, I stared at it for a whole year.

Did you learn anything from writing your book and what was it?

Yes that anyone could actually write a book, and if you find a good agent like frank Weimann anyone could get published.