Apr 12, 2021
Erik Allen’s life started usual enough, full of Sunday school and Little League games. But when he was 11, his parents got divorced. That’s when things took a turn for the worst.
His mom’s new boyfriend, an extremely abusive alcoholic, moved the family to a tiny town in Montana, a population of 1,200. It suited his purposes of isolation well; after arriving in Montana, the abuse “just got worse,” Erik says, “because we were so far away from the police and so far to town.” Eventually, he had to physically come to his mother’s defense, a night that ended with the cops arriving but no charges ultimately being pressed. For Erik, that drove home the message that he was on his own.
“I've pretty much raised myself since I was 14 years old, and it led me down a path of darkness and addictions,” he said. “At 21 years old, I was $28,000 in debt... I’d moved 21 times between the ages of 18 and 21. I’d filed for bankruptcy. I’d already been in jail. Just a crazy path.”
Not long after, Erik moved to Seattle to try to make it in the music business industry. He didn’t get paid a lot — at Universal Records, he wasn’t paid anything at all for his first six months of work — but he did get a lot of free concert tickets. And they all came with open bar tabs. “It was about 175 concerts, and I never paid for a drink ever and got blasted every single time. It was just wild, man.”
But it wasn’t making him happy. Depressed, aimless, and still plagued by addictions, he knew he needed a significant change in his life. One day, that change presented itself when a woman, also from a broken home, walked into the Starbucks store he worked nights at and asked if he wanted to go to church with her.
In this episode of True North Man, Erik tells Paul about how that woman became his wife, his path to becoming a successful entrepreneur, and how he’s rewriting the legacy of his upbringing for his kids.
What You’ll Learn:
Favorite Quote:
“My faith is everything… I don't push the fact I'm a Christian on my shows, but I show it in love. Quit judging people. Just love on people the way they're. I've been there, and I know what it's like to be broken. But you can get through it.”
— Erik Allen
Connect With Erik:
How To Get Involved:
Discover all that Paul Beam has to offer at www.true-north-ministries.com
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