"I had nothing"— When Shark Tank's Robert Herjavec decided to make it out of poverty

In a March 26, 2024, interview with The CEO Magazine, Shark Tank investor Robert Herjavec reflected on his early years, sharing that in his 20s, he dreamed of buying a house one day, just like many other immigrants.

To prepare a road map for buying the house he calculated the capital he would need as a down payment based on the salary he was making at the time. He soon realized that with his current income source, he wouldn't be able to save enough money for a down payment.

With this in mind, he realized he had a choice to make: either live like his parents, who eventually paid off their house in their 60s, or go out and secure capital. He shared that when he went out to grow capital he learned that it was a harder job than making a great income and he would need to take "bigger risks".

"In North America, the hardest thing in life to attain is capital – it’s easier to make a great income than it is to grow capital. I started calculating the numbers because I’m a very numbers-oriented guy, and I just said, ‘I gotta start taking bigger risks.’"

Robert noted that he had nothing at the time and decided that if he were to ever take a risk then it would be best to do it when he had nothing to lose.

“At the time, I had nothing, so I figured if I’m ever going to do it, do it when you have nothing. There’s less to lose,” he said.

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Shark Tank investor Robert Herjavec reflects on his struggling childhood and making big as an immigrant

In his interview with The CEO Magazine, Shark Tank star Robert Herjavec reflected on his childhood and shared that he didn't know his family was poor until he went to school in Canada and his classmates started calling him poor.

He explained that when he and his family used to live in Croatia they didn't have an understanding of the relativity of rich or poor, because he came from a "dirt-floors little village" where everybody was in the same situation.

“I think that gives most immigrants a lot of drive and a desire to fit in. On the flip side, I also think that it gives you a little bit of an imbalance where you never quite feel you’ve made it, which creates a certain amount of paranoia,” he added.

Robert felt that after moving to Canada their life became much harder and it had a significant impact on his outlook toward money and life. The Shark Tank star then recalled a conversation he had with Mark Cuban, in which his fellow shark told him that he had always known that he would become "wealthy" from the time he started his career.

Reflecting on the conversation, Robert compared his situation and shared that during his early days, his only goal was to escape poverty.

"There’s a certain fear and uncertainty I still harbor to this day that I think is hard to let go of when you’re displaced in that way. It’s not an excuse – it’s my psyche,'" he added.

The Shark Tank investor further shared that if given the chance to start over, he would dream bigger. He explained that it took him a long time to break free from his limited view of the world, a perspective shaped by his background.

He added that because of their background and limited perspective, a lot of immigrants and underprivileged people don’t believe they can make it big or become the CEO of a company.

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Shark Tank season 16 episodes air every Friday on ABC.