Stands to reason that a man would make a successful stand in a town named St. George. After all, it was St. George who stepped up and slayed a town-killing dragon. We don’t know whether or not the martyred saint had an addictive personality to go along with his bravery. We do know though that he had a winning personality. So does St. George resident Jefferson Rogers.
Addiction to Success
Jefferson Rogers wasn’t really feeling it back in 2017. He had no savings to speak of, a nothing job, and a thousand-dollar-a-month drinking habit. Oh, he also had a family. A beautiful family. But he spent most of his family time nursing the latest hangover.
Then one fall day he stumbled upon the story of a man named Grant Cardone. Cardone purported to be a billionaire businessman. He was also selling an online mentoring program. The program looked rather promising. Then again, through Rogers’ bloodshot eyes, everything looked promising. Everything except for where he happened to be.
Rogers signed on.
Then he went out drinking and drugging. Again.
The next day something clicked. Maybe it was the new year. Maybe it was Cardone and his program. Or maybe, just maybe, Rogers had finally had it with himself. Whatever the case, he went to his wife, admitted his problem, then committed to getting sober.
Rogers wasn’t able to get out of bed for a full week.
JKR Windows
Rogers rose from his self-imposed detox and began making plans for his own window replacement company. He was in a good market. And he’d always been a good salesman. When he discovered that Cardone had also overcome a serious addiction, all signs seemed to be pointing to Yes.
Make that Yes, indeed.
Within two months, JKR Windows was up and running, writes Deseret News reporter Lee Benson. By the end of 2018 the company had recorded $1 million in sales. In 2019 sales doubled to $2.2 million, and in 2020 to a whopping $10.4 million.
COVID-19, it turned out, was an unexpected boon for a business that solicits clients by old-fashioned door knocking.
“It was the greatest time to catch people home in history,” Jefferson told Benson. “People were sitting on their (stimulus) money and they wanted to buy windows.”
Still, building a business wasn’t easy. Not by a longshot. In fact, it meant working long hours and missing a lot of family time. Unlike the old days though, Rogers had a good reason. Better yet, when the newly-minted business owner was able to be with his family, he was fully present.
“I’ve gotten better at being incredibly present in the time I am with them,” he told Benson, “so relationships don’t get tarnished while I’m building something great.”
Addictive Personality
Transitioning from alcoholic to workaholic seems like such a simple solution. Seems sensible too. Incredibly sensible. Especially when you consider it involves summoning a trait that already exists.
“I traded one addiction in for another addiction,” says Rogers. “I took all of that energy and those addictive traits that gave so much attention to drugs and alcohol, and I refocused them on building a business.’
“That’s the thing about addictive behaviors,” he continues. “You can use them to drag yourself down and believe you have a sickness you’ll never be able to overcome, or you can use them for positivity and growth. I had my addictive personality focused in the wrong direction for a long time. I always had these capabilities, I had a lot of natural skill, good genes, good energy, I just had it focused in the wrong direction. Once I focused it in a positive, productive direction things started really cranking.”
He’s not kidding. JKR Windows is now the fastest-growing window replacement company in Utah and Rogers fields a staff of over 100 employees, from offices in both St. George and Draper. He needs the room too. Because his company is projected to generate between $15 million and $20 million in sales this year.
Not bad for a man who began 2018 with a bank balance of zero.
What’s in an Addictive Personality?
If you’re reading this then you already know you’ve got a personality that is more likely to become addicted to something. You also know you’re the kind of someone whose extreme passion can quickly develop into an obsession or fixation. In other words, you’ve got an addictive personality.
But flipping the switch like Rogers did is much easier said than done. In the first place, there are the physiological ramifications of addiction. Not everyone had the time, place or temperament for a self-imposed detox. In fact, for some it could be downright dangerous. There are also psychological considerations, beginning with support. Few folks are blessed with the kind of familial support Rogers had. Heck, many addicts and alcoholics are lucky to still be in touch with their family.
The question then becomes do the pluses outweigh the minuses? We’re not entirely sure exactly what Cardone’s program offers, but we’re certain that a guy doesn’t build a $5 Billion portfolio of multifamily properties from scratch without knowing a thing or two about pluses and minuses. We’re also certain a big shot motivational speaker wouldn’t dismiss the minuses before they’ve ever had a chance to interfere. That goes for negative people too. In fact, Cardone says there’s no success if negative people are in your orbit.
It’s about more than pluses and minuses though – it’s about having the right mindset. It’s also about taking your cues from the right people.
Success is no different than any other skill, says Cardone. Duplicate the actions and mind-sets of successful people and you will create success for yourself.
All In
Rogers decided enough was enough then got busy with his dream. He rose early, worked late, and likely never took No for an answer. He certainly didn’t take No as an answer to his problems. Likely still doesn’t. Mostly though, Rogers chased that dream with the same giddy-up and go-go that he had chased his addiction. He was All In.
These days Rogers runs a podcast called just that – All In. He’s also gotten in on the motivational game. And why not? The man built a wildly successful business in less than four years! He also kicked the drugs and the liquor to the curb – for good. Sounds like a motivator to us.
Healing Properties congratulates Jefferson Rogers on his sobriety, as well as his success. We also wish him the best, with JKR Windows, as well as All In. We’d also like to thank Jefferson for serving as such a perfect example of what’s possible for someone suffering from addiction and/or alcoholism. And for showing us the way to an inspired and productive life.
We’d also like to thank Deseret News reporter Lee Benson for tipping us off to such an inspiring story, as well as for telling the tale in such an inspiring manner. With headlines so often filled with horror and failure, it’s terrific to find quite the opposite. We only hope there’ll be more of such stories to come – for everyone’s sake.
And you? Are you ready to join Rogers and Cardone and the rest of the successes? You don’t have to become a motivational speaker, but you do need to be motivated. Perhaps they’ll have a trick or two you could use. We do. In fact, we’ve got a few tricks. And they’re all about sobriety. Give us a ring and we’ll get you sorted.
“You are one decision away from a completely different life,” says Rogers. Make it the right one.
(Image courtesy the good folks at Dropping Bombs.)