EP84:5-28-12: Paul Roberts | MOVE

There are hugely important in all our lives. To some, they are just random dates. To others, they represent things like birthdays, graduation dates and weddings.

It’s amazing how minor one day can be to the masses, but mean so much to one person.

May 28, 2012 is that date for Paul Roberts and his family. It’s when he asked God to make him stop.

That’s the day Roberts got sober. He’s been that way for more than nine years, sharing his journey with family, friends and members of The Alliance.

Prior to that day, Roberts drank socially, but that wasn’t when was at his worst. The bad times were when he drank alone. He would drink liquor while sitting in his bathroom alone. One night he woke up in his garage and wasn’t really sure why he was there.

In January of 2012 he finally hit rock bottom. There were multiple trips to the emergency room to get help after rounds of binge drinking. He started hallucinating and had thoughts that he was burden on his wife, Tamara and their daughters – Torre and Randi.

Luckily, that stopped on May 28, 2012.

During the last nine years, Roberts has gone from losing cars and houses to replacing them with significant upgrades. The anxiety he fought for so long to find his next drink has been replaced with celebrating milestones, running various distance races and helping agents become successful.

In early May, Roberts hit another major milestone in his professional career when through his company, Roberts Alliance (aka Roberts Rockstars), helped Roberts become a managing partner with Integrity Marketing Group.

Roberts and Tamara are the first members of The Alliance to partner with Integrity since Andy and Jane Albright joined forces with Dallas-based Integrity, the nation’s largest independent distributor of life and health insurance products.

The Roberts Rockstars group has grown from a small office into a space that allows Roberts to host meetings and events. It’s a special space because of the history he has with it. It was formerly SouthWest Beer and Wine Mart, a place Roberts stopped at almost daily to buy more alcohol.

When Roberts stopped drinking the mart closed less than 90 days later. Roberts was surprised and joked that he had put them out of business when he stopped drinking. The space became New Hope Church for a little while. One day Roberts saw that the building was available because the church was moving. After several visits to see the space, Roberts felt comfortable making this the new home of Roberts Rockstars.

Since the move, Roberts is focused on helping agents grow through coaching and showing them what is possible with a little work.

“I want it bad for them,” Roberts said. “I’ve got mine and now I have to help them get theirs too. Becoming a partner with Integrity has really opened things up for all of us to shoot for partner.”

Roberts is a leader who has shown that with unbreakable determination, one can overcome even the toughest odds. Entering the insurance industry was a leap of faith for Roberts. However, he came equipped with over a decade of experience in professional recruiting. That experience taught him the power that building strong relationships and demonstrating compassion can have on a business.

Today, Roberts Alliance supports a national network of life and health insurance agents who help thousands of American families find the coverage they need. The company placed more than $25 million in annual paid premium during 2020.

"When we started Roberts Alliance, our mission was simply to serve families," Roberts said. "But in life, I've learned you can't do anything alone and we were ready for the next step. Now that we've joined Integrity, we can reach thousands more Americans than we could on our own. Integrity will take many back-office responsibilities off my plate, so I can serve my team more than ever before. I can't wait to see where this journey takes us, and I am so excited that Roberts Alliance is joining forces with Integrity."

No one is prouder of Paul Roberts than The Alliance CEO Andy Albright. He’s been right there with Roberts, who started working with The Alliance in 2005. Albright calls Roberts an example and inspiration for others who are facing their own struggles.

“Paul’s journey is nothing short of inspiring in terms of where he was in 2012 to where he is in 2021,” Albright said. “Through it all, he’s continued helping people grow. He’s one of our greatest success stories, which is why Integrity wanted to make him a partner. Jane and I couldn’t be happier for Paul and Tamara. I predict the Roberts Rockstars are going to grow like crazy moving forward.”

Bryan W. Adams, co-founder and CEO of Integrity, echoed Albright’s comments.

“The story, intensity and passion that Paul brings is truly inspirational and we're honored to partner with him and his team," Adams said. "This partnership will allow Integrity to invest in Paul's business and give him more access to technology and tools, as well as provide crucial resources to help him support his agents. We believe you can never have too many all-star players on one team. Adding Paul to our Integrity family is going to add to our powerhouse squad."

Fueled by industry-leading technology, the Integrity platform offers a vast toolkit of resources to help Roberts Alliance achieve monumental growth. Partners have access to proprietary quoting and enrollment technology, product development and a world-class advertising and marketing firm. Roberts will continue to run his business while taking advantage of Integrity's centralized business functions, such as accounting, human resources, IT and legal. He will also collaborate with the country's leading partners that have already joined Integrity's network. Roberts Alliance will also have access to the leading skill sets of Integrity Partners.  

“Our vision has always centered around family, community and team," Roberts said. "With the Employee Ownership Plan (for our staff), our incredibly loyal employees can now share in a piece of Integrity. They are being given a place of honor within our corporate family. I couldn't be more thrilled about our next chapter of growth with Integrity. This partnership opportunity provides us endless possibilities."