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Build With Stephen Scoggins


Jul 23, 2021

Peter grew up from humble beginnings in a small midwestern town in Willmar, Minnesota. After finishing high school Peter paid his own way through the first three years of college in Minnesota but decided to quit his junior year. He lived with his twin brother at the time, who also decided to quit, and keeping it a secret from their parents while they continued to live in their dorm room through the rest of the semester, they worked on their racquetball skills.

With a tremendous amount of practice, Peter’s level increased dramatically, and he eventually became a sponsored player for Ektelon and turned pro. The discipline and dedication learned while playing at such a high level later fueled his success in business. His discipline, consistency, and competitive nature found he and his brother ranked as the No. 2 doubles team in the country.

It was racquetball and one fateful call that led to Peter running and soon owning his first health club. Before moving to Orlando, Florida to compete in the Sunbelt Tour, he called the owners of the local club where he practiced in Willmar, Minnesota. Even in his early twenties, Peter had a good head on his shoulders and knew the club was losing money. He pointed out to the owners that the manager they had in place was not engaged with the members or the community and didn’t understand the importance of delivering an exceptional customer service experience to its members. He told the owners if they ever wanted to turn things around to give him a call, and a year and a half later, they did.

Peter was promised only $16,000 a year in salary but a chance to buy out the owners if the business turned around. Within five years, through bartering for interior upgrades, and training the staff to peak performance, membership sales skyrocketed... growing the club profits from losing $200,000 a year to gaining $250,000 in profit. He secured ownership and with the debt paid down, over the next 15 years he repeated that cycle building 6 more health clubs to what became the brand America’s Fitness Centers.

Taunton’s accomplishments have been well-recognized by the business community. In 2010, he was named Ernst and Young “Entrepreneur of the Year.” His companies have also been featured in such prestigious industry lists as Entrepreneur 500, Inc 5000, Top Global and Franchise 500.

NEXT STEPS MENTIONED IN THIS PODCAST:

1. Get Impossible Hill by Peter Taunton.
2. Find him on Instagram.

TOPICS DISCUSSED IN THIS PODCAST:

[0:24] – #1 Principle.
[1:30] – Key Attributes of Father.
[3:39] – Authority.
[5:20] – Opportunity.
[10:15] – Process Learned or Inherent?
[14:51] – Celebrate the Sacrifice.
[24:36] – Self-Sabotage.
[25:30] – Favorite Story.
[28:50] – Impossible Hill.
[31:06] – Ideal Client.
[35:07] – 40 Day Walk.
[38:47] – Legacy.
[42:07] – How Has Faith Shaped You?