No matter a person’s social status or income, whether the economy is booming or surging. It’s the select few people who take the hill head on who seem to win in all conditions.
I have always been fascinated with the people in this world that have gone before me, who have left an example for us to follow. For me, I remember where this part of myself first began showing up in my life.
When I sat down to create the ideas I would write in this book; it occurred to me that my father was the first example I had of what it means to be a hilltaker. Looking back on my 35-year career in business, he set the principles that I used to start my first business at eight years old. Little did I know; those were the same principles that helped me start the international fitness franchise, Snap Fitness.
Even to this day, as I share this message, I still remember the day my father sat the family down and told us that we were moving. I was four years old at the time and as the youngest of 7 children living in Minneapolis. I went to school in a two-room schoolhouse and shared a bedroom with my two brothers. We had no carpet, and I will never forget the nails poking holes in the unfinished ceiling. I remember those days fondly and can still picture the cowboy light fixture in my room. The symbolism of that cowboy would become a fixture for the entire Taunton family.
My father wanted better for us, and he was willing to risk everything to make sure we had a better life. At that time, a move from Minneapolis to Willmar, Minnesota, was considered a loss instead of an opportunity. Willmar had a population of 15,000, but my father saw the potential. It was time to cowboy up, and we were all along for the ride.
He had taken over the local Red Owl Grocery store, and although I didn’t see it, it was that moment that would define my life forever. The Red Owl was failing when my father arrived, but he was determined to change it. It was his ambition and attitude that inspired me the most. He was always one of the first ones to the store and one of the last ones to close up shop. Six days per week, my father worked tirelessly, but you could never tell by his attitude.
My father was quick to greet everyone with a smile and a handshake. He would be bagging groceries, running the checkout stand, and stocking the shelves. My father put himself above nothing and above no one. That work ethic resonates with most people today, and it resonated with people back then as well. I saw the determination in his work ethic. Failure was not an option, and there was no plan B. He did, however, close on Sundays because Sunday was reserved for family and church.
This is where I first learned the full meaning of showing up and taking the hill. My father risked everything to create a better life for our family and worked tirelessly to make sure that was a reality. Still, he never forgot to take the hill with his family, and he showed up for the people who counted on him.
By the age of 8, my father let me start helping out at the store. Eager to show what I had learned by watching him, I started a popcorn stand, my first successful business. Every day I saw my father leading by example. He had an unstoppable fire. I learned work ethic, intentionality, and compassion for everyone, even for those that may wrong you.
One day, as I walked by my father’s office, I noticed a man sitting in a chair face to face with my dad. He was clearly in some sort of trouble, and I will never forget the look on my father’s face.
A few moments later, the guy left the store. Just as any curious 8-year-old would, I asked him what happened. My father explained, the man had sewn pockets along the inside lining of his jacket and was caught filling those pockets with steaks. Sure of the answer I would receive, I asked him if he called the police.
“No, Son, I gave him the steaks.”
Dumbfounded by his response, I wondered why. I don’t recall his full answer, but I remember the lesson vividly. My father was a compassionate man and was always willing to show up for everyone, even if they didn’t show up for him. That is what it means to take the hill. If you show up at your job, but not for the people that count on you, you are a hill taker.
Taking the hill is about showing up in all aspects of your life and knowing that you are showing up to your highest potential. If you are considering chasing a big goal in your own life, reaching success may feel like an Impossible Hill. I’m here to tell you that nothing is impossible as long as you are willing to show up each day and take one bite out of the elephant at a time.
I know what you are thinking, “Easy for you to say, you’ve already done it.”
That is true, and that’s why I am so confident in its truth. I came from nothing, dropped out of college, and started my career on a $16K annual salary. I bootstrapped my life and my business before building an international fitness brand.
If you’ve ever desired to create your own business, or if you’ve started your journey as an entrepreneur, and especially if you’ve created momentum building a company.
You already know how difficult yet very important it is to remain motivated, develop emotional resilience, and lead a team with integrity. In fact, most small businesses fail within the first two years, and 98% of business owners never scale beyond regional success.
This book, Impossible Hill delivers a process that gives you the mindset, tools, and blueprint to discover the unstoppable fire within to destroy your limits and take the hill of your dreams.
Anyone can become a hilltaker, and it starts with a decision. A decision that “I am a hilltaker.” For example, let’s say you are a meat-eater. You have lived your entire life eating steak but decide overnight that you are now a vegetarian. Yet, that decision will be tested when you eat your next meal. It will be tested again three days from now when your friend asks if you want to come over and grill out steaks. That is the point of the analogy. You become a vegetarian when you decide to become a vegetarian. But, you must solidify that decision over and over with each decision you make.
Coming from the fitness industry, I have seen the recurring patterns where people say they are ready to take the hill with their health, only to burn out and stop coming to the gym a week later.
You are a hilltaker just by showing up to the gym. However, it’s day 11, when your body is sore, and your motivation fades. That is when your actions solidify the decision of who you are and give your mind the evidence that you indeed are a hilltaker.
This is not a book on theory; there are plenty of those in the marketplace. These are conclusions based on real-life experiences and over 35 years of success running businesses. This book will explore how to stop killing your progress, how to solidify your decisions, and how to back them up with proof, both physically and mentally. This book will share how you can clarify your vision and your North star-creating momentum, enrolling yourself in your vision while also inspiring the people around you to believe in your vision.
Finally, this book will be a blueprint to help you remove the sandbags in your life and use fear as your superpower. You will learn how to create a manageable cadence in your life that leads to consistent growth and progress instead of burnout. This process is called the hilltaker method, and it helped me bootstrap a company from one location to over 6000+ locations in 28 countries across multiple brands. After you understand the principles laid out in this book, you will be equipped with everything you need to climb the impossible hills in your own life.