The Enlightened Family Business Podcast

The Enlightened Family Business Podcast
Ep. 158: You Can't Lead the Next Generation If You're Not Around For It — Dr. Mark Su on Longevity
 

In this episode of the Enlightened Family Business Podcast, host Chris Yonker sits down with Dr. Mark Su, functional and longevity medicine physician, founder of RootSeek Health and True Wellness Clinic in New England, for a wide-ranging conversation on what it actually means to take authority over your own biology. Dr. Su breaks down the three-category framework he uses in his longevity practice — age-related diseases, cellular root causes of aging, and lifestyle factors anchored by muscle health — and explains why your biologic age matters far more than your chronological one. They explore the groundbreaking science behind epigenetics, telomere health, biologic age testing, and VO2 max, and why moving just one category in your VO2 max ranking is statistically more protective than quitting smoking or eliminating heart disease. Dr. Su also tackles the overwhelm of the longevity information landscape, the critical role of self-advocacy in healthcare, the underappreciated connection between trauma, ACE scores, and chronic disease, and where AI fits — and doesn't — in helping individuals prioritize their health. A conversation for driven family business leaders who are ready to invest in their most important asset: themselves.
Episode Chapters
·       4:40   Meet Dr. Mark Su
·       8:07   Why Longevity Is Having a Moment
·       12:03  Genetics vs. Epigenetics: How Much Authority Do You Have?
·       17:29  The Three Categories of Longevity Medicine
·       27:36  The Four Horsemen: Age-Related Diseases
·       29:00  Cellular Root Causes of Aging: Telomeres, Biologic Age, and Immunity
·       32:00  Muscle as Your Longevity Organ and the VO2 Max Breakthrough
·       35:47  Testing: What's Available, What's DIY, and What Requires a Doctor
·       41:44  Trauma, ACE Scores, and the Stress-Longevity Connection
·       47:38  How to Find the Right Practitioner
·       53:00  The Role of AI in Personalizing Your Health
·       57:37  Hyperbaric Chambers and Emerging Treatments
·       58:46  Resources and Farewell
 
Websites
·       drmarksu.com
·       rootseekhealth.com
·       truewellnessclinic.com
·       chrisyonker.com
 
About Dr. Mark Su
Dr. Mark Su is a functional and longevity medicine physician with over a decade of practice experience in New England. He is the founder of RootSeek Health, a virtual practice specializing in chronic inflammation and longevity medicine with no geographic boundaries, and a co-founder of True Wellness Clinic, a brick-and-mortar longevity clinic offering in-person procedural treatments including hyperbaric oxygen therapy and IV ozone. Trained at Tufts and deeply influenced by the pioneering biological age research of his wife, Dr. Jessica Su of Harvard, Dr. Mark Su brings a systems-level, root-cause approach to helping patients understand where they are biologically — and what they can actually do about it. His work bridges chronic disease, longevity science, and the belief that every person deserves a clear map for living their healthiest, fullest life.

The Enlightened Family Business Podcast
Ep. 157: The Conversation Your Family Needs to Have Before You Die — with Attorney Don Ford
 

In this episode of the Enlightened Family Business Podcast, host Chris Yonker sits down with Don Don Ford III, estate planning attorney and founding partner at Ford Bergner in Texas, for a candid conversation about the estate planning conversations most families are actively avoiding — and what it costs them when they do. Drawing on over 30 years of working with high-net-worth families and business owners, Don shares the real-world consequences of leaving heirs unprepared, how to think objectively about your children's attributes when designing an estate plan, and why putting the wrong people in the wrong roles can unravel decades of wealth building in a courtroom. They explore the danger of co-beneficiary trusts, the $88–$125 trillion great wealth transfer underway through 2045, and how the next generation can have respectful conversations with aging parents about the future. Don also offers practical guidance on how to select and vet your advisory team — and why introducing your kids to your advisors now may be the most important wealth transfer move you make.
Episode Chapters
·       2:01   Meet Don Ford
·       4:45   What Actually Keeps Families Together
·       7:42   When Wealth Lands Without Warning
·       11:04  The Burden Nobody Asked For
·       15:49  Fair vs. Equal: The Executor Trap
·       19:00  When the Board Destroys the Business
·       22:11  Trust Structures That Blow Up Later
·       25:43  The $125 Trillion Transfer
·       31:21  What Wealthy Families Actually Look Like Up Close
·       33:54  Advice for the Patriarch or Matriarch
·       36:46  What Next Gen Should Be Asking
·       40:02  Build Your Advisory Team
·       43:44  Resources and Farewell
 
Websites
·       fordbergner.com
·       chrisyonker.com
 
About Don Ford
Don Don Ford III is an estate planning attorney and founding partner at Ford Bergner, where he has spent over 30 years advising high-net-worth families, business owners, and multi-generational family enterprises across Texas on estate and trust planning, wealth transfer, and family governance. A graduate of accounting with a law degree focused on estate and trust work, Don brings both technical precision and a deeply human perspective to some of the most complex and emotionally charged decisions families face. He is a frequent advisor on trust litigation, family board disputes, and the design of governance structures built to last beyond the founding generation.

The Enlightened Family Business Podcast
Ep. 156: The Hollow Win: What a mid-eight figure Exit Taught One CEO About Money, Purpose, and What Actually Matters with Nate collins
 
In this episode of the Enlightened Family Business Podcast, host Chris Yonker, interviews Nate Collins, of Raymond James on why family businesses should prepare for a potential sale even if they have no intention to sell. Collins shares his experience taking over a 170–180-year-old New York City licensing company owned by 16 families, receiving an unsolicited offer, and completing a financially strong but imperfect exit due to limited preparation and lack of independent board oversight. They discuss reducing key-person risk, documenting processes, upgrading accounting and systems, strengthening management teams, and regularly revisiting future org needs as markets change. Collins emphasizes clarifying business, personal, and financial goals; using advisors as investments; and starting with an exit planner to coordinate M&A, legal, tax, and wealth planning. He also addresses post-exit purpose, community, and wellbeing, and offers a free quarterly exit planning workshop.
 
·       02:35 Meet Nate Collins
·       03:59 Running a Multi Family Firm
·       05:53 The Unplanned Sale Lessons
·       09:40 Build to Be Transferable
·       15:45 Succession Org Planning
·       18:28 Next Gen Reality Check
·       23:00 Assemble the Exit Team
·       26:04 Wealth Without Ruin
·       29:53 Purpose After the Exit
·       37:46 Resources and Farewell
Websites:
·       fambizforum.com.
·       www.chrisyonker.com
·       Raymondjames.com
·       Linkedin: @nate-collins
 
Nate Bio:
Nate is a former CEO who managed a successful exit to a large, PE-backed media company. He now works with a limited number of business owners, CEOs, and their families to help ensure they are achieving their financial goals. As a Financial Advisor and Certified Exit Planning Advisor, he provides in-depth tax mitigation and estate planning strategies, as well as financial planning and investment management. Nate helps owners understand exit readiness and options, wealth transfer, gain family alignment, and prepare for "life after exit."

The Enlightened Family Business Podcast
Ep. 155 - Stop Reacting, Start Strategizing with Patrick Thean
Host Chris Yonker introduces the Enlightened Family Business Podcast and interviews Patrick Thean, a bestselling author and early contributor to scaling-up methodologies, on practical planning and execution for small to mid-sized (especially family) businesses facing succession or sale. Patrick shares his journey from Singapore to the U.S., training as an electrical engineer, working at Oracle, founding and selling a transportation logistics software company, and discovering a calling to help CEOs succeed. They discuss establishing an annual strategic planning rhythm, including SWOT/aspirations and specific "winning moves", quarterly 13-week execution plans, limiting priorities to three to five objectives, and balancing strategic vs. operational initiatives based on whether the business is in crisis. Patrick emphasizes using facilitators and outside-industry perspectives to overcome blind spots, avoiding overreliance on benchmarking, and reframing accountability as support for commitments, clarity, and agreed consequences.
 
·       03:06 Meet Patrick Thean
·       03:36 From Engineer to Founder
·       07:11 Selling and Finding Purpose
·       08:17 Helping CEOs Succeed
·       10:43 Family Business Transitions
·       14:33 Annual and Quarterly Rhythm
·       18:04 Three to Five Priorities
·       19:18 Strategy vs Firefighting
·       23:44 Small Tweaks Win
·       25:12 One Permanent Improvement
·       31:41 Let the Pro Lead
·       35:12 Blind Spots and Tunnel Vision
·       38:36 Accountability as Support
Websites:
·       fambizforum.com.
·       www.chrisyonker.com
·       Patrickthean.com
·       linkedin: @patrickthean
·       Instagram: @rhythmsystems
 
Patrick Bio:
Patrick Thean is a USA Today and Wall Street Journal bestselling author, award-winning entrepreneur, and world-renowned strategy execution expert. He is the creator of the Think Plan Do® process and co-founder of Rhythm Systems®, helping CEOs achieve breakthrough results and scale with clarity. A seasoned CEO coach and speaker, Patrick has empowered thousands of leaders to turn vision into execution and boost company valuations along the way.

The Enlightened Family Business Podcast
Ep. 154 - How a Family Turned a Passion Project into a Resilient Brand
With Jodi Scott
 
In this episode of the Enlightened Family Business Podcast, host Chris Yonker welcomes Jodi Scott, co-founder of Green Goo. Together, they discuss the unexpected path her family took into the family business, which led to their product being distributed in over 150,000 retail locations. Jodi shares insights into their family dynamics, the influence of her parents, and the valuable lessons learned from their upbringing in a military household. The conversation dives into the challenges they faced, including a major setback that led them to buy back their company. Jodi emphasizes the importance of communication, proactive support, and mentoring in maintaining a healthy family business environment. The episode concludes with Jodi offering advice for other family-run businesses and recommending Green Go products, notably the versatile first aid ointment and skin repair cream.
 
·       00:54 Jodi Scott's Journey into Family Business
·       02:28 Early Life and Influences
·       07:31 The Birth of Green Go
·       12:52 Sisterly Bond and Business Dynamics
·       19:32 From Farmer's Market to Full-Fledged Business
·       22:27 Challenges and Seeking Guidance
·       24:42 Establishing Trust and Roles in Family Business
·       27:34 Implementing Family Employment Policies
·       29:05 Expanding to Retail and Online Markets
·       30:07 Navigating Military Market and Retail Challenges
·       34:09 Facing and Overcoming Business Crises
·       39:16 Rebuilding and Future Plans
·       42:57 Advice for Family Businesses
Websites:
·       fambizforum.com.
·       www.chrisyonker.com
·       Greengoo.com
·       Instagram: @greengoohelps
 
Jodi's Bio:
Jodi Scott is the Founder of Green Goo and CEO of Spry Life, a family-owned portfolio of plant-based wellness brands. She co-founded Green Goo with her mother and sister in a small farmhouse kitchen, hand-crafting herbal salves that grew into a nationally distributed plant-based first aid brand carried in over 120,000 stores.
With a background in biology, pre-med studies, and a Master's in Health Psychology, Jodi bridges traditional herbal medicine with modern science, focusing on clean healing, nervous system resilience, and reducing everyday endocrine disruptors. Her work emphasizes how small, thoughtful inputs compound over time, in health, leadership, and family systems.
Jodi has lived every role inside a family business: product formulator, order packer, marketer, executive, and daughter. After selling Green Goo and later navigating a complex buyback to reclaim the company, she brings rare firsthand insight into continuity, conflict, trust, and alignment across generations.
Today, Jodi works alongside her family running operations from their Colorado farm while mentoring other founders on building values-driven businesses that prioritize people, purpose, and long-term resilience. Her work sits at the intersection of wellness, entrepreneurship, and conscious family leadership.