Client Q&A: Chris Stallings

Chris Stallings
Atlanta, GA
Client since 2014

What was life like before you came to First Steps To Success?
I thought I had a pretty good life. Things were crazy, but I thought that was normal. I tried to manage my time and money well, but when I went to First Steps To Success for the first time, I got a taste of what it should be like. It gave me hope, but it also gave me a practical way of getting there.

I had a conversation with my wife immediately after the event was over, and I was crying and repenting for being such a bad steward over our money and my time. We didn’t have debt at that point, so we were living a very convenient lifestyle. I told my wife, “We can do so much more with what we’ve been given. I’m not leading you the way I should be leading. I don’t honor you to the degree that I can.” I thought I was doing a good job, but I wasn’t up to the potential I knew I was capable of, and that separation was a very strong source of tension, and it was exposed that weekend.

It was everything from how I manage my time, to really a lack of vision for my company, and even being afraid to delegate and trust people.

The bottom line is, if you compare yourself to anyone else, you’re great. But that weekend, I realized there was so much more. If you compare yourself to your previous best, you’re always going to be propelled to the next level of success.

Why did this realization hit you so hard?
I owe it to my wife to be as real as I can, and to elevate the covenant of marriage above the two of us as individuals. I was not cultivating a healthy marriage. I was working on me, and I was doing okay, but because I didn’t elevate the marriage, I sacrificed what could have been. That grieved me.

I was putting my best into my business and other people I came in contact with on a day-to-day basis, but not into our marriage. By the time I got home at the end of the day, i had very little left to give. I should have been giving my best to my family, but they were getting the leftovers. And it was because we thought we had a good marriage! But First Steps To Success made me realize how much better our good marriage could be!

What does your life look like today?
I cut my work hours from 60/week down to 30, and our business has grown! We’ve been able to hire several more people and open a second location.

I’m much more available for my family. I’m able to be more proactive, rather than being reactive. I’m able to plan and budget and make wiser decisions in my family or business or finances. I get to spend time with my wife and my children, and it’s not just another task or responsibility I have to get done.

Watch Chris’s interview on The Dani Johnson Show, as he shares his amazing and inspiring story of transformation, growth and restoration! (And BONUS! Hear another incredible story from Lindsay Krause – a hard-working wife and mother, who successfully runs a business AND a home!)

For another dose of inspiration and encouragement, read more success stories here!

If you’re ready to take a leap of faith, and get equipped with the skills you need to expand your business, explode your bank account, transform your family, and live the life you were born to live, get registered for First Steps To Success now! Don’t put your life on hold for one more day!