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I am committed to making positive change for people. I do my work with the hope that I am making a difference, but like many leaders I know never really know if I have made an impact. I was thrilled and honored to receive an email message recently from Rad Tantra in Indonesia. This extraordinary young man was inspired by my podcast interview with Dan Lok. I am extremely grateful that Rad has kindly given me permission to share his letter.

How can you have an impact like Rad has created in his community?

Hi Mr. Greer,

Allow me to introduce myself: my name is Rad Tantra and back in March 2016 I listened to your episode on the Shoulders of Titans Podcast with Dan Lok and was taken back by your interview. I genuinely felt your interview was the most profound and insightful out of all the episodes I listened to on the way to school, home, and anywhere I went. After all these years, I finally gathered up enough courage to contact you and express my gratitude towards your work and your message to all tech entrepreneurs.

Inspired by your vision, I started up my own library in my rural village in Bali, Indonesia in my sophomore year of high school and implemented Microsoft Access databases and forms for kids to find the books they want. All of this was done on two recycled computers which are now constantly being used everyday in my library. I organized a book donation box at ANZ Bank in Jakarta and a few other local bank around Bali and managed to gather around 2000 donations. The project was massive work but it’s also been massively rewarding. If I hadn’t listened to your episode on that podcast and been inspired by the golden nuggets of advice you gave me that day, I don’t think the underprivileged students and adults of my village would be able to learn using the resources I’ve managed to gather for them. For that, thank you so much Mr. Greer. Your message means the world to me and so many others.

I also recently applied to universities in the US and will be attending college in the States this September. If I hadn’t learned to get out of my comfort zone after listening to that podcast, I don’t think I would have the courage to apply to colleges outside of Indonesia and see what’s out there for me in the world. Instead, I’d be unsatisfied with attending school here, and of course, I wouldn’t do anything about it. Your message has inspired me to become an entrepreneur, whether in technology or another field. You’ve inspired me to seek out demand in the market and fill that demand with a product or service. You’ve motivated me to take the steps needed to where I want to be and who I want to become in life. You’ve opened my eyes to a world of possibilities. Thank you, Mr. Greer.

I hope my email hasn’t taken up too much of your time as I understand how valuable your time is. Sorry if there were any misconceptions or false statements in my email. I want to be just like you, if not above where you are – but I’ll never, ever forget who gave me that spark to chase my dreams.

From a beloved and passionate Indonesian fan,

Rad Tantra