Tara LaFon Gooch

Hi Reader, Two weeks ago, I lost one of the rarest people I've ever known. David Mulldune; former Marine, Vietnam veteran, author, and one of the most quietly extraordinary souls I've had the privilege of calling a mentor and friend. I've been sitting with grief and gratitude at the same time. I first met David when I delivered my very first faith-based speech at a C-Suite For Christ Raleigh-Durham Chapter meeting. He was in the audience. We spoke briefly afterward, and then one day I picked...

Hi Reader, Recently, I’ve experienced what most people would call a string of setbacks... 📚 Top book publishers turned down my next book.🎤 A TEDx event I spent five months preparing for (fully written and memorized) was canceled.🙏 I was even rejected from writing free daily devotionals! And interestingly… that last one stung the most. Now, you might expect that to be discouraging. And maybe, if you’ve ever faced something similar, you can remember a time when rejection felt personal… when it...

Hi Reader, Let me ask you something… Have you ever noticed how the stories we tell ourselves quietly shape how we show up in the world? For years, I carried a story. A story of pain… of disconnection… of things that were never resolved. And without realizing it, that story was influencing my confidence, my voice, and even the level of success I allowed myself to step into. Because what we don’t release… we rehearse. And what we rehearse… becomes who we are. It wasn’t until I consciously chose...

Hi Reader, I remember the day I walked away from everything. The company car.The laptop.The cell phone.The health insurance and salary. Gone. 🤯 I didn’t have a backup plan.I didn’t have a clear roadmap.I just had this deep, undeniable feeling… There had to be more. What surprised me the most wasn’t the uncertainty. It was the lack of support. On my last day, my boss told me: “You’ll never make the kind of money on your own.” And for a while… he was right. My first year in business was hard. I...

Hi Reader, After the last email I sent, I expected some to unsubscribe. Instead, something incredible happened. I had the highest reply rate ever. Many of you wrote back sharing pieces of your own story. Others sent encouragement and support. A few even asked how they could help and generously made introductions. That meant more to me than you probably realize. Thank you. 🙏 Your responses confirmed something I’ve been sensing deeply: people are searching right now... for truth, for purpose,...

Hi Reader, For years, many of you have followed me because of brand strategy, confidence, speaking, business growth, and personal development. Those topics matter deeply to me. But lately something deeper has been weighing heavily on my heart. I can’t just help people build their businesses. I feel called to also speak about something far more important: our souls. Because success, influence, money, recognition; none of it compares to what is eternal. And right now, the world feels heavy....

Hi Reader, There’s a moment that quietly holds people back from the life they feel called to live. It sounds reasonable. Responsible, even. “I’ll start when I feel ready.” But what if ready never comes? What if clarity isn’t something you wait for…but something that meets you after you take the first step? Every meaningful step in my life began before I felt prepared. Before stages.Before books.Before speaking in rooms that once would have terrified me. There was uncertainty.There were...

Hi Reader, Over the past five weeks, I’ve been sharing more deeply about the GRASP Method; the framework I created that has shaped my leadership, my faith, and the way I move through calling. We’ve talked about: Gratitude — trusting that nothing has been wasted and to find thankfulness for everything. Responsibility — taking ownership of your choices and your growth Action — moving forward even when clarity isn’t complete. Sight — developing strategic vision beyond current circumstances. And...

Hi Reader, "You cannot be what you cannot see." One of my favorite quotes from Marian Wright Edelman, civil rights activist and founder of the Children’s Defense Fund. She used it in the context of representation, possibility, and identity formation. What she understood and what most people overlook is that vision doesn’t just inspire action; it permits it. When someone can finally see themselves in a future they once thought was unavailable, something internal shifts. Sight is the fourth...