At 18, Ted Clouser arrived in Arkansas with $400 in his pocket and faxed his résumé to every computer company he could find.
One hired him.
Twenty years later, he owned it.
But becoming the owner exposed a problem Ted never saw coming: he had spent two decades building a company around himself. Every question led to the same answer—“Ask Ted.”
When he tried to step into a different role, the business struggled to function without him, beginning one of the most difficult seasons of his life.
In this episode of The Grit Mindset with Matt Rosen, Ted talks about rebuilding the business, rebuilding himself, and the advice from his wife that helped change his perspective:
Stop trying to solve the next 18 months. Win today.
It’s a conversation about leadership, resilience, family, and learning that being indispensable isn't always the same thing as building something sustainable.
Watch the full episode of The Grit Mindset with Matt Rosen.
What is Grit Mindset with Matt Rosen?
The Grit Mindset is where the people who already broke tell the real version. CEOs whose playbooks died. Green Berets and pro athletes who lost the identity they built everything on. Founders and fund managers who watched the money disappear. Not the LinkedIn version — the specific day it ended, the unglamorous middle, and what the rebuild actually cost.
Hosted by Matt Rosen — CEO of Allata and national media commentator on AI and leadership — every episode follows the story through four acts: who they were before, the break, the rebuild, and the bill.
If you're leading through the next five years, these are the people to learn from. Stay gritty.