From Corporate Misfit to King-Maker: An Evening with Paul Lushin

Paul Lushin became a business owner at 17. He hasn't stopped.

After realizing he was a corporate misfit, Paul founded Lushin and Associates in 1997 with his wife Sarah. They built it into one of the country's leading Sandler Training franchises. 19 employee-owners, a second office in St. Louis, and clients running the gamut from small family businesses to Fortune-tier names. In May 2023 he completed an ESOP transition and sold the company to its employees.

Along the way, he and Sarah built a second business: Lushin Investments. Strip malls, Village Pantries, corporate relocation housing in Carmel and Fishers, and the Lushin HQ they're hosting us in. Two companies, one family, 28 years of building.

On July 16, Paul is hosting OWN Indiana at the Lushin HQ in Indianapolis to walk us through what 46 years of building has actually taught him.

THE NIGHT AT A GLANCE

Thursday, July 16, 2026

4:00 PM to 7:00 PM

Lushin HQ

5655 Castle Creek Pkwy N Dr, Indianapolis, IN 46250

$15 per ticket. Food and drinks included.

Free for OWN Indiana members.

Capped at 50.

WHAT PAUL WILL COVER

This is Paul telling his story, not a sales presentation. The tactics get woven in along the way.Why he left the corporate world to start his own thing, and what 'corporate misfit' actually means in practice. How he and Sarah built Lushin and Associates from scratch, and why he believes most owners stay stuck as the 'Chief Cashflow Officer' running their own sales. The ESOP transition: why he chose it, what the 18 months leading up to close looked like, what he wishes he'd known. How Lushin Investments accidentally became a real business, and what running two companies side by side taught him. The mistakes he'd warn the next 17-year-old founder about, including the ones he made with people, with cash, and with himself. Open Q&A so the operators in the room can drive part of this.

THE RUN OF SHOW

4:00 to 4:45 Arrive, food and drinks, networking

4:45 to 5:30 Paul's talk and open Q&A

5:30 to 7:00 Open networking

WHO THIS IS FOR

Owners, founders, ETA searchers, holdco builders, and operators running businesses across Indiana. If you've ever felt like you're stuck running everything yourself, or you've started thinking about how this thing eventually gets handed off, you're in the right room.

ABOUT PAUL

Paul has been a business owner since age 17. He founded Lushin and Associates with his wife Sarah in 1997, where he serves as a business development coach and consultant working with presidents, CEOs, and owner-operators across the country. He's known for being direct and provocative in a way that makes people think. In his own words: 'I like being the king-maker, not the king.' Outside of work he's a father to five sons, 'Pop Pop' to four grandchildren, and a reserve police sergeant.

ABOUT OWN INDIANA

OWN Indiana is a year-round community for people building, running, and acquiring businesses across Indiana. We host monthly events, publish a free monthly briefing called Operator Notes, and try to be useful. Learn more and subscribe at ownindiana.org.

PHOTOGRAPHY

We'll take photos and a few short video clips with Paul for post-event content. If you'd rather not appear in any of it, just let us know at check-in.

QUESTIONS

Email [email protected]. Same-day reply.

Know what’s Happening Next — before everyone else does.

Get App

Host or Publisher OWN Indiana | The Indiana Owner-Operator Network