My Epiphany – By Craig Kautsch

I remember it vividly.  I was 31 years old and the retail business that I built from the ground up just failed. I had a custom house in the country on 8 acres, two kids on the ground and a stay at home wife. All the work, all the effort, all the dreams….gone.  I built the retail empire throughout my 20s to millions in sales and three locations. I donned the cover of the local business publications as the up and comer entrepreneur. I thought I was the cat’s a#%…right up until I wasn’t.

I began weeping uncontrollably driving into town to close the last store.  I pulled off the highway because I couldn’t see or breathe. Facing the heaviness and embarrassment of 1.7 million in bad debt was more weight than I could handle. I knew this was an inflection point for me.  I wiped the tears from my eyes and got back on the highway. I grit my teeth and clenched my fists for the next 8 years to pay it all off through my new real estate investment company.

But I was still afraid for some reason.

Once I could see more clearly and was no longer in survival mode, I noticed some of the same patterns showing up that caused the first failure.  I couldn’t pinpoint the underlying reasons but I could clearly see some of the behaviors and outcomes that seemed chillingly familiar.  My epiphany? There was one common denominator in both scenarios…ME!

My desire was to avoid the same path to destruction and I was sensing familiar patterns.  Patterns of isolation, imbalance, frustration, and an inability to see and embrace reality.  I knew I couldn’t solve this on my own because I’ve been down that path.

What did I do about it? I joined a TLP group!  I learned of TLP through one of my best friends and saw significant changes in him.  He was course correcting and going in a new direction, a better direction, the direction I wanted.  If it was working for him why couldn’t it work for me?

TLP helped me discover three things that changed my life and business forever.

Fast forward 4 years and my level of growth is exploding through the TLP experience.  Transitioning from being in a TLP group to being a TLP director has had a significant impact on me.  Having almost 80 employees keeps me very busy but my passion project of facilitating a TLP group has been a key part of my growth.

Nothing makes me more excited than to watch isolated leaders begin to see the light.  Walking alongside them while their capacity to execute on their vision expands. Witnessing their entire organization and family life go to new places because they were able to unlock their potential is exhilarating!  It feels like a rebirth for the second half of my life and a launchpad to lead leaders. The TLP experience has both immediate and eternal upside!

Craig Kautsch

TLP Director