How To Integrate Business With Family And Faith

We stop chasing “balance” and start building a beautiful life where business supports what matters most. We share how family, health, faith, and a strong team create real flexibility, plus the boundaries that keep our minds and marriage steady. 
• building a life first and integrating business into it 
• prioritizing family experiences, travel, and making memories 
• treating health as a longevity strategy, including quarterly bloodwork and habit competition 
• letting faith shape leadership through grace, compassion, and service 
• embracing business and personal life overlap while still naming limits 
• the real-world test of flexibility during our son’s serious surgery and recovery 
• designing boundaries that match personality differences, including Sundays off and Saturday processing 
• redefining unplugging, from quiet time to problem-solving rituals 
If this was impactful to you in some way, if this made your life even a little bit better, please share this with somebody else that you think could learn and grow from this as well.

Transcript

Build Life First Then Business

SPEAKER_00 0:00

The goal of building a business is not to have one that fits in your life. The goal is to build a beautiful life, and part of that life is the business that you love. Welcome back to In Good Space. I have with me Alan Sparks. Woodwood. Good to see you.

SPEAKER_01 0:24

Good to see you, boss.

SPEAKER_00 0:26

It's really awkward to say because I see you all the time. No. Today we really want to talk about the um concept of building a life and building a life while building a business. I think the long of the short is this you don't build a business that somehow fits into your life. You have to build a life and then find a way for your business to really be integrated and implemented into what you do every day.

SPEAKER_01 0:48

That's very true. That's very true.

SPEAKER_00 0:49

So I think it's important to start um with the simple fact that like we are humans outside of Linden Creek. Um we enjoy things um and aspects of life. And so we thought it'd be fun to share transparently like some of the things we're building in our personal lives outside of Linden

Family Memories Over Things

SPEAKER_00 1:04

Creek. Um, one of them is family is obviously massively important to us. We love our kiddos to death. And so building memories as much as we can is something that's crucially important. Uh, whether that means um random coffee dates with the kids, um our three girls love books. And so anytime we can go to a bookstore and pick up books, they are happy beyond belief. Um we love to travel, and so travel's become a really important part of what we do, exploring new cultures and getting the kids to be a part of that now, too. Those are the things to us right now that are wildly, wildly important that we put a ton of priority and precedence on.

SPEAKER_01 1:39

They call me the experience dad. Yes. I I want our kids to remember the experiences that they have with us more so than the things that they have. Things get old, they break, they get thrown in the closet, right? But those memories will be there for um as long

Health Season And Longevity Habits

SPEAKER_01 1:53

as they have it. Another thing that we're really into right now, we're really in a health season, right? Um, I think anybody that went through 2020 um and came out the other side, I think they have a an appreciation for health. If you're in good health, that's something you should protect. Um, health is wealth, as many people say, right? Um, but really making sure we're focused on just eating good things, um, exercising, um, making sure our blood works where it needs to be, you know, all that all that kind of stuff. I think that's important. Longevity is important if you want to be able to operate at a high level for a long time. We certainly do that.

SPEAKER_00 2:24

And like real life, so we get our blood drawn every quarter with a cool company that helps us know like what metrics are good, what's bad, what we can do to be better, and it gives us a score of like where we're at. Um and we compete against that on the regular. Um, I'm winning. And he gets really mad about that. But it's but it's that fun dynamic of like doing something together, focusing on something together that we love and enjoy, being competitive and playful about it. Um, but it's just so we can live to be 120.

SPEAKER_01 2:53

I know. You made me sign that contract when we got married. I did.

SPEAKER_00 2:55

You can't marry me unless that's a joke.

SPEAKER_01 2:57

I didn't sign a contract.

SPEAKER_00 3:00

Um, maybe it's gonna happen. Yeah. Eat enough broccoli.

SPEAKER_01 3:03

Okay.

SPEAKER_00 3:04

Oh, no way. Spinach. We'll go for that one.

SPEAKER_01 3:06

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 3:07

Love design, but think like a business owner. If you're ready to leave your nine to five and want to do something that's buildable and scalable, check out linden-creek.com slash franchise and see if Linden Creek is the right fit for you. So those are some of the things that are important.

Faith As A Leadership Lens

SPEAKER_00 3:21

I think the other one that's like underlying that's wildly important to us personally is our faith. Yes. Um, we met at church, and so, you know, even just something as simple as that, but everything that we do, like having that underlying um aspect of like loving and serving God and and doing the things that are reflective of like his will is something that's super important to us.

SPEAKER_01 3:42

100%. I think it feeds into every decision we make, especially with our team, you know. Like I think if you don't understand grace, you can't give grace, you know. And so I think that's a huge component. Um, the compassion side of things, um, understanding people where they are, right? To help motivate them to a better version of themselves, right? We've talked about this in episodes past, but trying to motivate our team, our franchise owners, to just go to places they never thought they could go, right? Um, so faith is certainly a

Let Business Blend With Life

SPEAKER_01 4:12

huge part of that.

SPEAKER_00 4:12

So I think something that's important to highlight is like, then the question is cool, we're building this cool, beautiful personal life that we love. How does business play into that? And does it bleed into that? Um all the time. Yeah, I think that's the answer. Like, yes, business bleeds into our personal life all the time. Right. Um, and I there was a season where I was like, shoot, I'm sorry, we did it wrong. It shouldn't be like this. We should have clear boundaries. And somewhere along the lines, I went, but why? Something is so much more beautiful to me when it's just integrated. And I love um our ability to kind of navigate in and out and through business and personal on the regular. Like we're this blended cobweb mix mix of conversations. Last week, you and I went out on a date and we were having dinner, and it was like the conversation went to went from like, hey, kiddos and this thing that's going on with the kids to a big challenge we're dealing with at work and like how do we overcome it and problem solve it to like, hey, funny story from our team the other day. And then like on pivoting to like when we go on vacation in a few weeks, we're so excited about. And so there's this constant like shift of conversation, like a ping pong ball sometimes when you're like hear us at home of like every topic under the sun that just gets covered that is all over the place. And some of it is business because that's part of where we're spending our time in our life.

SPEAKER_01 5:30

That's true. Our four children are very big advocates for another sibling. They have made no bones about it, they have done like professional presentations and so forth. And we have kindly let them down gently and let them know that that's not the cards, it's not gonna happen. Um, and one of the reasons for that is because of this massive behemoth that we have that we joke in the family is another child. It really is in a lot of ways. It needs to be nurtured, cared for, supported, all that stuff. Um, and so it certainly weaves into everything. You're exactly right, you know. Um, but there are limits. There are limits sometimes.

SPEAKER_00 6:03

You know, I think like that's the other piece of it. I I find business to be not just, you know, business and what we do and that I'm passionate about, but like it's a hobby. It's fun for me. Like my free time is reading business books and learning how to be better, or listening to podcasts and learning how to be better. Like I will sit happily on a Saturday morning in front of my laptop and get a bunch of work done and explore new ways to innovate and build and create. And like that is my happy place. And it's not very often that I'm like, I need to step back and take a break. I have them. You have them more often, where you're like, I just need to pause. So, like, what does that look like?

SPEAKER_01 6:37

Yeah. So I think the premise of the way I'm built is you're such a visionary. You've talked in the past about your million ideas that you have. And so to be by your side as you process those million in real time is exhausting to the person on this side, you know, in a lot of ways. Cause it's like, how much is she serious about? How much is she planning? You know, all that kind of stuff. And so I think, you know, I need more frequent breaks to be able to just process because I'm the integrator, right? So it's like, oh shoot, I've got to be able to put this into motion, right? So having a minute to just step back and go, what in the world was this? I need those more than you do. You just tend to keep going. You know, um, you're hard to keep up with sometimes. But we do our best. We do our best, you know? So yeah, that's a it's a real thing.

SPEAKER_00 7:23

I think one of the things that's important to highlight when you reflect on like, okay, what does it look like to have this weirdly integrated business personal life, life building situation is like, what does that actually mean? And is there benefit to it? Like we just said it inundates every aspect of our life. So, like, is that a bad thing? Um, but but I think the flip side is this because it's so heavily integrated into our lives, because we've built great teams to just kind of handle so much of what we do, we have a different level of flexibility that I will never take for granted.

When Crisis Hits And Team Steps Up

SPEAKER_00 7:54

So you and I were just in a season not too long ago where um my adorable bonus son, your son, um, had a very serious surgery. Um, it's something that we've kind of been preparing for for the last year and running through tests and procedures to make sure that it's something that could be successful. Um, and without getting too much into the like medical technical details of all of that went through, it required a significant um time from us to be there at the hospital and be there during the surgery, the procedures, but the recovery process was extensive. And that's not just like physical time of sitting in a hospital room. That has been a lot of emotional time of like stressing over is this procedure going to be successful? Um, what happens if it isn't? What happens if it is? Um, and so many ups and downs and emotional like wins that we got to experience through it that you know, you came out of the other side of that a week later um just exhausted because truly it was like a really stressful experience for us as we kind of navigated this really terrifying decision that we made um for the betterment of him and his health. And it's really cool to be on this side and be like, he is healthy, he is stronger than he has ever been. This was totally the right decision. But there was a lot of unknowns in that season, and there's a lot of wanting to be by his side and supporting him and loving him throughout all of it that um was a really challenging time.

SPEAKER_01 9:18

It was very challenging. Um, again, so grateful that we're on this side of it. We'll tell the people a little bit about it so that they can late and understand. So um, my son was born with um hemoplegic cerebral palsy. And so basically, he had had a couple of strokes prior to birth that had damaged the left side of his brain. And so was born with that and has grown up. He's now just over six, six and a half. Actually, he'll be seven in October. He's coming up. Um, and so through his life, as he's learned all the motor skills, um, again, he's very high functioning, walks, runs, laughs, talks, does all that stuff. Um, what we found is that the damaged portion of the brain was causing seizures. And so the seizures were really setting him back in a lot of ways and could potentially had future impact on the healthy side, the right side of his brain as he grew older. And so, like, full disclosure, the decision was made to remove completely the left side of his brain. And that's something that as a parent, you you can't wrap your mind around that. And to be able to give the doctors permission to kind of push that red button, there's no going back from that. And there were, we were made aware of the risks, right? Um, of all of that. And um, thank God none of them came to fruition. And truth be told, now he has absent the left side of his brain. He hasn't had any seizures, he's fully functioning, he's out of the hospital, he's back to running. He called me the other day. Uh, he had a checkup and he said, Daddy, I said, What's up, dude? He said, I'm free. I said, What does that mean? He goes, I can uh I can ride my scooter and I can jump in the pool, you know? And so all these cool things to hear about that process. I just first of all would be remiss if I didn't say thank you, God, for one. Like that is a miracle in and of itself to think that a human being can function in at such a high level, missing half of what we all need to be necessary. I need both sides of my brain. Um, he does not. And uh it's an amazing, amazing testament to science, amazing testament to his doctors, um, the human brain, but ultimately the grace of God. And that's something that um we're so grateful for. So that that's a little behind the scenes on what actually happened. So it was taxing, it was demanding, um, lots of decisions, meetings, you know, calculating information. But the point of all of that is, you know, we were able to step away from the day-to-day of the business and allow our team to execute. Um, and it's imperative that you have people in your organization that can allow you to blend the ins and outs of life and business. And we are so thankful for our team. They did a heck of a job.

SPEAKER_00 11:57

Well, and I think, you know, it's not just doing that as an entrepreneur. I think it's doing that wherever you are in your career. When you like pause and go, let's not say start, stop, let's like just integrate. It gives you this freedom and flexibility, honestly, at a personal level, that is even more forgiving. Um, and so, yes, like to for us to be able to like mentally unplug from Lyndon Creek during that season, let the team take the reins so that like we could be there, you know. Like when he woke up, it was the big test, right? Like, can he move his arms and legs? Can he speak? Can he like they're all of these tests of like we don't know what functionality we lost? And he didn't lose any of it. But like the tension building up to that moment that we've been like had pits in our stomach for for months leading up to this, is draining and exhausting. And so the fact again that like business can still be there and operating and running and successful and doesn't miss a beat. Um, we told our franchise owners after it was all said and done, and they were like, we had no idea this was happening. Yeah. And it's when you hear that we had no idea this was happening, you're grateful for the business that you built that keeps things happening so that no one has to know, not that you want to keep it a secret, but their life isn't impacted because of something that's happening personally in yours. Um, and so having that flexibility to step back, having that flexibility to just be hyper-focused as dad. And you would make so many hospital visits during that like month of recovery. And I was trying to get out there as much as possible. But to have that flexibility, that is invaluable. And that is something to me in business ownership that like I never take for granted because do we work really hard? Yes. Do we put in a lot of hours? Yes. But the one thing that I get that my team doesn't get in the same way is I do have the moments where I go, I need to pull back and pause because this is more important and I get the right to do that. And so there's this pros and cons, right? Like, am I the one that picks up the things that are falling apart on a Saturday or a Sunday or Tuesday night or Thursday morning at 5 a.m. That was this morning, right? Yes, that's me. But if I need to, I get to have all the flexibility in the world to support and be the personal mom that I want to be, the family member I want to be, the whatever it may be. And that's something that oftentimes a normal job doesn't allow you the same level of flexibility for.

SPEAKER_01 14:08

Can I tell one more story? Of course. Or sorry for the people so they can hear it. So my son, um it's a moment I'll never forget. It's my one of the proudest moments of my life. And so he had gone through this crazy procedure. And one of the risks that they had advised us of was again, we don't know what the doctors were saying this, like what how much has been remapped, right? The brain can rewire itself, especially when children are young. You know, you get that the first 10 years of your life, there are so many synapses that can be rewired. And so one of the things we know about the brain that I've learned about the brain is that your speech can be run by both sides of the brain, your vision, both sides of the brain. And so one of the things they openly said to us is we don't know if we take out the left side, how much of his speech has been rewired. We hope that it all has, but we just don't know. Um, and so honestly, that was the thing to me that I was most nervous about.

SPEAKER_00 15:05

Because um he is totally your son. And so he talks a lot. There he has never met a stranger in his life. Like his verbal aspect is is who he is. It's all the personality, it's all the energy, it's all the whatever. And so to lose that or have risk of losing that was like a very real concern.

SPEAKER_01 15:23

It it is Brack. Cut that out. It it is my son to the extent, and uh, you're so right about that. And so, you know, he had been under anesthesia that had kept him sedated for about 24 hours, you know, around from beginning of surgery until when they were ready to to wake him up and extubate him and take the tube out and so forth. And he had a team of doctors around his bed um overseeing that procedure. Of course, I was there, you were there, um his mom was there, her fiance as well. And so it was it was just cool to have that camaraderie in the room. And um they pull the tube out, and the doctor says, All right, buddy, you know, I need you to say something. I'm gonna get emotional. Said, I need you to say something. And he said something really muffled, and she said, What? Can you say that again? And the very first words out of his mouth for for the dad that was worried about his speech was I want to see my dad. The very first thing he said. And I'll never forget it for as long as I live. It was such a proud moment.

SPEAKER_00 16:22

Yeah, so I think on that note, it's like these are the moments of flexibility that we never take for granted and that are worth, you know, the challenges on the other side and the blended and the integration. But there

Boundaries That Keep You Sane

SPEAKER_00 16:33

are moments outside of like really intense, serious, hey, we're we're gonna call on surgery and do these big things and spend time in the hospital, um, that I think require us to pause as well. For me, I don't like working on Sundays. Um, I don't like working on Sundays. I'll say it like that. Um, I hate checking my email on Sundays um as much as I love working. I I don't like dealing with whatever challenges are we're facing day to day. Monday through Saturday, I'm here for it. I'm super excited. But like Sundays I want to unplug. And so that's something that I've built in for my own sake and sanity to be able to do. And what's bizarre is like I don't work, but like my happy days on Sundays are me learning from books, learning from podcasts, brainstorming better ways to do things, getting to be a visionary, right? Getting to play and dabble in this like creative, innovative space. Um, and that's my happy place. But there are times where it's a Sunday and you're like, hey, let's talk about it. I'm like, no, it is my Sunday. I just don't want to hear about it. And so, you know, even though you have this blended, like built-in life of everything all at the same time, it's also important to know like you as a human, where is your capacity and where do you want to draw lines and boundaries so that you can be successful? And you've had the same, you don't care as much about Sundays, but like you have your own set of boundaries.

SPEAKER_01 17:48

Yeah, I've really learned to enjoy the peace and quiet of Saturday. Um, I, you know, allows me, again, I'm a processor, right? So just to what was the week that was? What's the week that's coming? Just be alone with my thoughts, process and organize. I think it's good to have that space. Sometimes that's on a golf course, sometimes it's in my warehouses. Like it just is what it is. Um, but being able to get away and just unplug. Um speaking of unplugging, can you tell the class um what your version of unplugging is? Because if you don't, I'm gonna tell them.

SPEAKER_00 18:16

Um, I don't know that I have a version of unplugging.

SPEAKER_01 18:19

That's correct. You don't have a version of unplugging. Yeah. So this CEO, like, she can't she can't just sit. She can't just sit and be still. So like if her husband wants to watch a show on Netflix for like a couple hours a day just to like unwind, she can't just sit there and do it.

SPEAKER_00 18:35

No, it's really You really can't. It's like physically painful for me. Um, and I want to be really supportive and be a good wife. So like I will sit next to you on the couch, but like my brain cannot focus on it. I get bored, I get antsy, I'm thinking about a thousand things. So, like, my solution to staying seated has been um I play a stupid game on my phone that's like a puzzle bus game um that helps me load people onto a bus. Um, but it's my therapy session. What level are you on? Uh like 362 or something like that. It's kind of gross and embarrassing.

SPEAKER_01 19:03

Yes, it is.

SPEAKER_00 19:04

But um, it's it's a way for my brain to keep problem solving because I think that's what I love. Like, I don't like to unplug. I love to problem solve. And you and I were talking this week, and I was like, my happy place isn't like you and I like laying on a beach drinking margaritas. I'm like, my happy place is like, let's go almost die as we climb up this mountain together and hike. And then when we get to the top, we'll be like, let's do it again. Like I just, I love, I love pushing um as bad as that is, and I love problem solving and troubleshooting. And that's my happy place. And there was a season where I was like, I'm broken. Like we clearly need to find different hobbies. But I think I've accepted the fact now, like, this is just who I am. Is it normal? Maybe not. Are there other people like they're out there like me? Yes, and it's so fun when I find them. But like, it's okay to be this, it's okay for you to be that. And we just find a rhythm and a way to like get our own peace when and where we need it, whatever that looks like, even if it's a bus game.

SPEAKER_01 19:57

I had a team member come to me the other day and she goes, Man, I would just love to get into Elisa's brain for like 24 hours. And I very quickly was like, No, you do not. You don't you don't want to do that, like you'll never come out alive, you know? So um, yeah, yeah, that's certainly one of the ways to unplug for sure. All right.

Two Takeaways And A Challenge

SPEAKER_01 20:14

So in closing, let's leave you with two points, two things to consider. I'll start with mine. Number one, the life you're building outside your business is worth it, and it also helps you within your business. The family trips, the memories, um, the things you choose to spend your time on, like the they will complement one another. So focus on that. That's important. Don't forget the people in your life that love you, that you love, make sure you make that a focus.

SPEAKER_00 20:41

And I think for me, you know, this is a lesson that took me years to learn, but it's a simple one. It's that life and business are not actually competing with each other, they compound each other. And the moment that you stop trying to like balance this perfect little set of plates and you realize that just integrating and blending them all together oftentimes is okay, and not necessarily conforming to what society says the expectations should be, um, and and recognizing that like your version of this beautiful blended life is the right one for you. Um, it doesn't have to look like the guy next to you, it doesn't have to reflect what everybody else is doing. But as long as you have found a blend that you can define as a beautiful life, you're doing it all right. So, with that being said, um, my challenge to you is this give yourself grace um in this season and in these processes um and build yourself a beautiful life. This shouldn't be the one or the other. This should be a really culmination of something stunningly beautiful that you get to leave as a legacy for your family, that you get to set as an example for the ones that you love. With that being said, if this was impactful to you in some way, if this made your life even a little bit better, please share this with somebody else that you think could learn and grow from this as well. And until next time, this has been Alan and Elisa in Good Space.