July 1, 2023
Fasten your seatbelts, my friend; this episode goes deep. Today I rekindle the conversation with the esteemed Dr. Isaac Jones and his inspiring wife Erica.
You may remember me and Isaac's past discussion in the episode titled “5 Hidden Causes of Fatigue That Most Doctors Don’t Know About And Won’t Test For.” This time we dive deep into Isaac's businesses and the much deeper topic of family.
Credited as “The Doctor of the Future” by Jeff Arnold, the founder of WebMD.com, Dr. Jones is a relentless trailblazer in the realm of innovative healthcare solutions. His brainchild, the Health Experts Alliance (HEA), serves as a beacon for progressive doctors and health entrepreneurs, guiding them to create predictably profitable businesses that prioritize freedom.
Isaac isn't just revamping the health system; he's revolutionizing the way we perceive it, transitioning from mere “disease care” to genuine healthcare. His specialty lies in amplifying authentic health narratives, empowering the rise of truth-telling voices and businesses. Isaac's mentorship has paved the way for companies like Ancient Nutrition and Cellcore Biosciences, with collective sales exceeding $800M.
But it's not all business with Isaac. He's also a devoted husband to his lovely wife, Erica, and a proud father to their three sons and a daughter.
Their innovative and heartfelt approach to parenting landed them a feature in my book, Boundless Parenting, which is also available now in audiobook form where you can listen to Dr. Isaac & Erica narrate their section of the book.
And this is the greater topic of today's podcast: Family, and everything that comes with it.
We discuss topics ranging from parenting styles to love languages and even go into how I almost got a divorce, and what Jessa and I did to weather our marriage problems (as well as Isaac and Erica's tactics for mitigating marital turmoil).
Dr. Isaac and Erica have built their family over years of working together in business, curating their parenting practices, and navigating some of the most difficult and rewarding adventures possible for any parent. This wisdom has been hard-earned and deeply tested. Let their results be your map.
During our discussion, you'll discover:
-Who are Isaac and Erica Jones?…06:58
- In our 2015 episode, Isaac talked about chronic fatigue
- “Doctor of the Future”
- Founder and CEO of Health Experts Alliance
- Very passionate about health, but also about family, community, and God
- A dedicated husband and father of 3 sons and 1 daughter
- Ben decided to feature Isaac and Erica in his book Boundless Parenting
-What their morning health optimization routine looks like…10:07
- Isaac's morning routine:
- Wakes up before the family
- Goes to the washroom
- Puts on the DAB (Daily Audible Bible)
- Stand naked in front of red lights while listening to Scripture and brushing teeth and washing face
- Goes to the closet, where he has a vision board
- Plans his day
- 5-minute journal
- Short meditation
- Pre-create what the day will look like
- Prepares breakfast for the kids
- Bacon, eggs, and hot sauce
- Erica doesn’t have time for a long morning routine
- Focuses on night routine and good sleep
- Sauna
- Shower
- Bubble bath
- Stretching
- Reading the Bible
- Essential oil breathing
- Myofascial work and rolling muscles with foam rollers
- Competing with each other's Oura ring data
- Depends on his wife for his routine
-How did Isaac and Erica meet and marry?…17:46
- Isaac had a patient who lost 70 pounds
- Begged him to come to her church
- She was persistent, so he went to her church
- Met a guy who started calling him to church events
- Came to a church group meeting, and Erica was leading it
- Became best friends
- She worked for Big Pharma
- Wanted to hire her but married her instead
- Erica became the CEO of his company
-How Isaac and Erica built their business with their unique gifts…20:38
- Entrepreneur Organizational System (EOS) of their company
- Erica saw how Isaac was gifted with vision, influence, good relationship
- Realized she can take that vision and help him execute it
- At the beginning, they didn't have enough appreciation for each other's unique gifts
- She built the foundation for what later became a multimillion-dollar enterprise
- Erica is a gifted integrator, loves numbers and organization
- Integrator vs. visionary
- Rocket Fuel by Gino Wickman
- An integrator is someone that's looking at operations, making sure the company is profitable
- Are the systems and processes in place for the team to succeed?
- Are we sticking to the business plan?
- Now they have a different level of respect for each other around their unique gifting
- Ben’s experience with working with his wife
- Conflicts in business and how to resolve them
- Isaac and Erica don't fight as much as before
- Used KOLBE analysis to understand each other
- Isaac – quick starter, visionary, likes to think big, creative
- Erica – fact-finder, following through, research
- The Synergist by Les McKeown
- You have to understand how other people operate
- Understanding their assessments of who they are – operator, processor, visionary
- At first, stepping on each other's toes
- Later understood each other and their gifts better
- Ben runs his companies with the EOS system
- Enneagram Test
- Leaning on people that are more genius than you are in certain areas
- Understanding each other's strengths as parents and as entrepreneurs
- Involving children with their business but are still young
- Kids have the entrepreneurial spirit
-Ben and his sons' first company together…38:00
- Fried Pickles company
- Went to Costa Rica
- Had to come back because of Ben’s passport problems
- Had a whole week with nothing planned to do
- Did father-son fun night
- The Art of War by Sun Tzu
- Ben’s sons were reading it for homeschooling
- Got an idea about creating a game called The Fart of War
- Developed the idea by drawing different fart characters on index cards
- Podcast with James Altucher:
- Started a company Fried Pickled Games
- Go Greenfields
- Launching a game on Kickstarter
-Three main elements in Isaac's and Erica’s parenting approach…41:05
- The first component – Spiritual
- Their goal as parents is to teach kids how to have a personal relationship with God and to know the Lord for themselves
- What does that look like from a practical stance?
- It's all throughout the day
- A lot of the focus time is in the homeschool room
- God can be weaved into every aspect of education
- The story of Moses and how the kids reacted to it
- Teaching kids
- How to be attentive
- What does it look like to really love
- What does it look like to show deference and to put someone else ahead of yourself?
- How to be content with the moment
- Watching how their mom and dad live their lives
- Erica was a gospel singer – good quality music is always permeating the house
- Music is very important and powerful
- Ben’s use of music during the day
- Music brings the presence of God into the house
- Using music to enhance kids' lives
- The second element – Physical
- Health, wellness, holistic living
- Teaching children to live on purpose when it comes to their health
- Erica has done a great job with systematizing meals
- A whole system that rotates different types of meals throughout the day
- Kids were fighting every morning about what breakfast was
- Kids love to help in the kitchen
- The 4-Hour Chef by Tim Ferris
- Ben’s sons also learned to cook
- Isaac and Erica’s family love being outside and are very active
- Kids play in the dirt, love football, golf, wrestling, running
- Sense of adventure
- Creative play
- Ben's formal structuring of workouts
- Isaac's use of the Neubie
- The third element – Emotional
- Asking kids how they're doing
- Prioritizing their emotional health
- Trying to create an environment where they're able to communicate freely around their emotions
- Spending some alone time with a child to address their specific emotions
- Sometimes a formal one-on-one date
- Sometimes stealing a couple of minutes to talk
- It's important to make sure to carve that space
- If one child is getting less one-on-one connection, they start acting up, unconsciously
- Capturing small moments with a kid is very important
-Isaac’s and Ben’s breakfasts…1:00:14
- Isaac’s breakfast that morning
- Keto breakfast
- Bacon and eggs
- Grass-fed butter
- Olive oil
- Herbs
- Sea salt
- Hot sauce (use code BEN20 to save 20%)
- Ben’s breakfast
- Space milk smoothie
- Space milk
- Stevia (use code GREENFIELD to save 10%)
- Bone broth
- Fermented plants are designed in a way that creates all the essential amino acids
- Space milk smoothie
-The love language and marriage problems…1:01:53
- The importance of eye contact
- Ben’s eye contact exercise with his kids
- Using the love languages in terms of knowing your child’s language and adjusting accordingly
- Important to know what your child’s love language is
- Understanding your kids’ personalities and their needs
- They act out less when you understand what their love language is
- Surveys to identify the love language of each member of the family
- Isaac’s love language is words of affirmation and physical touch
- Ben’s experience with his wife
- Isaac’s experience with his wife
- Ben’s wife’s morning practice
- Reading the Bible or a devotional and praying for 2 hours
- Started when Ben wasn’t fully present as a husband and father
- Ben wasn’t devoted to God; He wasn’t a faithful husband
- His wife prayed for him; Ben realized what he needed to be
- Now he has Scripture and prayer time; God got them through all trials and tribulations
- Divorce is an easy way out
- Isaac talks about the most challenging times in his marriage
- You have to be committed to growth as a couple
- Challenges are the greatest opportunities for growth
- Healing and Recovery by David R. Hawkins
- Blame is a low-frequency emotion
- How to Be Free from Bitterness by Jim Wilson
- Little bits of blame throughout the day lead to deep-rooted bitterness
- Bitterness is associated with disease
- Jocko Willink -Discipline equals freedom
-How to manage your presence as a father and husband with travel?…1:25:05
- A lot of pressure on his wife
- Hard times finding a good nanny
- Joined Strategic Coach together
- Create your personal calendar before you create your business calendar
- Now first planning the year with his wife and kids
- As a husband and father, you have to sacrifice
- Type A personality can easily go into business growth mode all the time
- Chad Johnson, another parent who is featured in Ben’s books
- 11 kids
- Successful triathlete
- Successful entrepreneur
- He said your business would eat you alive unless you had priorities:
- God
- Spouse
- Kids
- Personal health
- Business
- Being with your spouse sexually is one of the most amazing spiritual gifts that God's given us
- Finding God Through Sex by David Deida
- Ben sometimes takes his family on his business trips
- When he comes back, he doesn’t plan anything for the next day
- John Eldridge’s One Minute Pause app
- Richard Branson's Necker Island
- Ben was called to be a speaker
- He was required to get a vaccination
- His wife was against it
- He listened to his wife, and she proved to be right
- Vaccination and Building the immune system
- Ben’s stance on vaccine
-Disrupt event in Atlanta…1:40:28
- Disrupt is a curated application on the event where you have to connect with Isaac or his team to qualify to come
- Top health entrepreneurs, doctors, and professionals are coming to support each other, innovate, create, build affiliate relationships, and come up with new innovative ideas and strategies to brainstorm to mastermind
- Some of the fastest-growing natural health companies in America are going to be speaking
- Sharing secrets of how they did it
- Got financiers and funding coming in
- How can the natural health space and longevity space progress and grow and disrupt the health industry?
- A conversation between like-minded individuals
- How can we serve people at the highest level to get the best results and deliver truly transformative healthcare to the masses?
- Ben will be one of the key speakers
- Disrupt Atlanta, September 28th, 29th, and October 1st
-And much more…
Upcoming Events:
- Disrupt Healthcare: September 29 – October 1, 2023
Join me for the Disrupt 2023 Event in Atlanta, Georgia, between September 29th – October 1st. This highly practical and immersive workshop will feature live Q&As, my top secrets for career success, and much more! Head to bengreenfieldlife.com/disrupt2023 to claim your spot today.
- Couples Collective: October 25 – 29, 2023
Join Jessa and me for an exclusive and immersive way to explore health, wellness, and mindset with your significant other in Napa, California October 25th – 29th. Head over to ownitcoaching.com/couples-collective to apply.
- Keep up on Ben's LIVE appearances by following bengreenfieldfitness.com/calendar!
32 Questions For Boundless Parenting
The following questions were posed to Isaac and Erica Jones, and the rest of the wise parents interviewed for my upcoming book, Boundless Parenting.
- How many children do you have, how old are they, what is their profession or passion, and why, in particular, are you proud of them?
- Are there any elements of your parenting approach that you would consider to be particularly unique?
- What books, systems, models, or resources do you rely heavily upon or consider to be indispensable in your parenting?
- What traditions, habits, routines, or rituals are most important, memorable, or formative for your family?
- What rites of passage or significant moments of maturation to adolescence or adulthood have your children experienced, if any?
- Who do you look up to as parenting mentors?
- What have you taught your children about raising their own children?
- Do you have any philosophies or strategies for educating your children outside of traditional school, such as homeschooling, unschooling, self-directed education, or other alternative, creative, or “outside-the-box” forms of education?
- What has been your proudest moment as a parent, and why?
- What do you wish you had known before first becoming a parent?
- Have you ever experienced imposter syndrome as a parent? If so, how have you coped with that?
- How have you achieved a balance between mentoring and passing on wisdom without “living vicariously” through your children?
- Have you ever faced any big parenting decisions that kept you awake at night worrying or that you feared you would mess up?
- What do you regret, if anything, from your experience as a parent?
- What is the biggest mistake you have made as a parent?
- What, if anything, from your parenting experience would you go back and change or improve?
- If you had multiple children, what did you think was right at the time with one child that you then went back and changed with the next child or future children?
- Have you ever sensed or feared that your children would grow up too different or weird as a result of any “outside-the-box” parenting approaches you used? If so, how did you deal with that?
- Have you ever differed from your spouse on parenting principles, techniques, or approaches? If so, how did you manage that?
- Warning: This question is long but important: As a parent, have you ever felt conflicted about wanting to share a book, teaching, resource, or method with your children as a means of impacting their future success, but feared that it might “overload” them, especially at their age? If so, how did you balance bestowing this valuable knowledge to your child without causing them to worry too much about adult concerns? How did you decide when to just “let a kid be a kid” versus nudging them towards responsible adulthood and the attainment of valuable wisdom?
- How have you balanced being a present, engaged parent while preserving your own identity, taking time for your own self-care, tending to your career, or pursuing other interests that did not include your children?
- How have you engaged in one-on-one time or created space for dedicated time with your child, especially if you have more than one child?
- If your children have grown up and moved out of your house, what strategies have you found most helpful for maintaining and building your relationship with them?
- If your children have grown up and moved out of your house, do you often miss them, fear for them, or think of them? If so, how have you coped with any loneliness or desire for their presence?
- Do you have non-negotiable rules for your children?
- How have you disciplined your children, if at all?
- How have you helped your child to establish responsible, moderated, or conscientious consumption or use of books, media, entertainment, screen time, and social media? This is not my favorite question because the focus on “limiting screen time” seems a bit blown out of proportion these days and I think causes kids to get obsessed with the “forbidden fruit” of screen time, but it seems to be on the minds of many parents today, so I’d be remiss not to include it.
- Have you emphasized or encouraged any health, fitness, or healthy eating principles with your children? If so, what has seemed to work well?
- If your child or children could inscribe anything on your gravestone, what would you hope that they would write? What would you most want them to remember about you?
- What do you most want to be remembered for as a parent?
- What do you think your child or children would say is their fondest memory of being raised by you?
- What message for parents would you put on a billboard?
Click here for the full written transcript of this podcast episode.
Resources mentioned in this episode:
– Dr. Isaac Jones and Erica Jones:
- Health Experts Alliance
- Disrupt Healthcare September 29 – October 1, 2023
- 5 Hidden Causes Of Fatigue That Most Doctors Don’t Know About And Won’t Test For.
– Podcasts:
– Books:
- Boundless Parenting by Ben Greenfield
- Rocket Fuel by Gino Wickman
- The Synergist by Les McKeown
- The Art of War by Sun Tzu
- The 4-Hour Chef by Tim Ferris
- Healing and Recovery by David R. Hawkins
- How to Be Free from Bitterness by Jim Wilson
- Finding God Through Sex by David Deida
– Other Resources:
- Chad Johnson
- Bacon
- Grass-Fed Butter
- Fresh-Pressed Olive Oil
- Colima Sea Salt
- Joey's Hot Sauce (use code BEN20 to save 20%)
- Space milk
- Stevia (use code GREENFIELD to save 10%)
- Kettle and Fire Bone Broth
- One-Minute Pause App
- JOOVV Red Light
- Sauna
- Essential Oil Wizardry
- Rumble Roller Foam Roller
- Oura Ring
- Neubie
- The Fart of War
- Go Greenfields
- Daily Audible Bible
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Boundless Parenting Audiobook: Everything you need to know about family, parenting, and raising healthy, resilient, free-thinking, and impactful children is now available as an audiobook. Go to boundlessparentingbook.com to learn more or order a hard copy.
Do you have questions, thoughts, or feedback for Isaac, Erica, or me? Leave your comments below and one of us will reply!
