In this Business Blast Podcast episode, host Tyler Wagner interviews Mikhail Tank, an entrepreneur, radio host, author, performance artist, and archetypal coach. Tank shares the origin of his "Dark Soul" concept, explaining the distinction between darkness (a creative source) and negativity, and how this informs his multi‑decade artistic work. He emphasizes the importance of discovering one's "soul DNA" as a foundation for authentic creativity, citing a recent interview with Zohar scholar Daniel Matt. Tank offers business advice centered on cultivating meaningful relationships, advises his younger self to ignore negative feedback, and discusses his view of happiness as a matter of perspective, referencing Maurice Maeterlinck's "The Bluebird." He highlights "The Catcher in the Rye" as a key influence on the power of an evolving individual voice, shares a favorite Freud quote about the mind as an iceberg, and provides his online contact details (mikhailtank.com, @MichaelTank). The conversation is informal, reflective, and aimed at inspiring listeners to pursue authentic, relationship‑driven paths in business and life.
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Welcome to the Business Blast Podcast. I'm your host, Tyler Wagner. This episode is brought to you by Authors Unite. Authors Unite provides you with all the resources you need to become a successful author. You can learn more about Authors Unite and join the free community at authorsunite.com. Now let's jump into the episode.
Alright everyone, welcome back to another episode of the Business Blast podcast. I'm your host Tyler Wagner. Today I have Mikhail Tank with us. He is an entrepreneur, radio host for the Archetypal Mosaic, author, performance artist, and an archetypal coach. So welcome to the show.
Thank you, Tyler. Thanks for having me. Hello everybody.
Of course, I'm pumped to have you on, man. We'll dive into the first one. The first question I have for you is is what is the best story from your life that has an underlying valuable message?
So when I was about 12 years old, I was kind of struggling with identity. And what came to me through me and through my soul is something that came to be known as Dark Soul, later Dark Soul Theater. And basically the story is that there's a big difference between negativity and darkness. A lot of people are afraid of darkness because, you know, they consider it negative. But there's a big separation between the two. And from darkness, I create light, um, and negativity I just stay away from. So my entire art form, which has happened for several decades, uh, including theater and music and books and movies and things, all come from this, uh, concept which came to me from the soul.
And what is the most valuable piece of information we should know that is within your expertise or industry?
Well, let's see. Most valuable piece of information from my expertise. You find out what your soul's DNA is. And, and you go from that place, from your own niche, from your own home of self. You know, just recently, I interviewed Professor Daniel Matt, who's been translating the Zohar from Aramaic for 20 years, the best translation ever, arguably. And this incredible interview and the entire collection are available. And the whole point is really to, like I said earlier in a different way, but it's really to find your own light and to really not be superficial. Superficiality really kind of distracts interest in people, I think.
And what's your best piece of overall business advice? So not necessarily industry-specific.
I don't have any specific— I'm actually yet to figure out the best business advice aside from creating meaningful relationships. I think like, yeah, I think relationships, you never know what they can turn into. So it's really good, you know, even if you get irritated by flakes and rejection, which I do get irritated by those things. It's really good to try to keep the relationships going because you never know what they can bloom into.
And if you could give your younger self one piece of advice, what would that be?
I would tell my younger self to always feel exceptionally comfortable and never feel like I should give a crap about any negative feedback from others.
And maybe that might lead into this next one. So in your opinion, what is the key to happiness?
Well, I think the key to happiness is written in The Bluebird by Maurice Maeterling, a Belgian author. And it's just the perspective that you have in your life. You can have positive or negative perspective and the way that you react to things and how you perceive them is really the key to happiness. And I work— I'm working on that myself.
And what is the best book that you've read and what was the number one thing you learned from that?
One of the best books I've read, because there are many, is The Catcher in the Rye by, of course, J.D. Salinger. And the power of an individual voice, no matter if it's Amateur or professional, the fact that it's a growing voice, that you're growing and learning is the key because if you think that you're, you know, like everybody says that if you think you've already figured everything out, then you're kind of stuck. So in the book, you have a constant river of movement. I like that.
And what is your favorite quote and why?
One of my favorite quotes, again, I have many, is by Sigmund Freud, whom I adore, by the way. And his— one of his great-grandchildren was on my show recently— is, "The mind is like an iceberg. It floats with 1/7 of its bulk above water." Hmm.
Very interesting. And, well, listen, dude, thank you so much for coming on. The last question I have for you before we let you go is, where is the best place for people to find you online?
Well, thanks, Tyler, for having me on your brief and succinct show. And people can find me on mikhailtank.com, spelled M-I-K-H-A-I-L-T-A-N-K dot com. And via verified social media @MichaelTank. Thank you.
Perfect. Thanks again, man. We'll talk soon.
Have a great day.
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