The Winning Balance

Ep. #45: Jaylon Vickers – Earn Your Spot: Building a Cleaning Empire While Putting Family First

Jaylon Vickers is the founder and CEO of MVP Cleaning, a company on track to hit $2 million in annual revenue by scaling aggressively into the commercial cleaning space. A former walk-on football player at BYU, Jalen applies that same "earn your spot" grit to the business world. In this episode, Jalen shares: * The Tech Sales Transition: Why he walked away from a comfortable tech salary to build a service-based business from the ground up. * The Power of "Presence": Why being a present father is the ultimate antidote to the "poverty trap" and how to stay grounded in a Utah bubble. * Scaling with Focus: How joining a high-level coaching framework helped him increase revenue by $30k–$40k a month just by cutting out the fluff. * Faith as the Foundation: Why a relationship with a higher power is the key to navigating the high-pressure seasons of entrepreneurship. If you’ve ever wrestled with the fear of "starting over" or wondered how to maintain a high-growth business without losing your connection to your spouse and kids, Jalen’s story of resilience and intentionality will give you the blueprint to level up.

Ep. #44: Joe – Scaling Tech, Beating Burnout, and Why Family Is Your Only Non-Negotiable

Burnout, and the "Dumb Kid" Success Story Joe is more than a veteran of the Utah tech scene—he’s a founder, a father of four, and a marathon runner who recently transformed his life by losing 65 pounds. After serving as a key early employee at Simple Nexus and witnessing its rise to a $1.2 billion valuation, Joe stepped out on his own to found Social Coach. In this episode, Joe shares: * The cost of an exit: The raw reality of moving his family every 18 months across the country and the toll of traveling three weeks out of every month to scale a massive tech company. * The power of spousal support: How his wife Natalie’s belief in him served as the bedrock for his career, even during the years he went without a paycheck while betting on himself. * Social media as the great equalizer: Why consistent, niche video content is currently driving 22% year-over-year growth for modern loan officers and real estate agents. * Non-negotiable family time: The exact practices Joe uses to stay present for birthdays and swim meets while managing a national enterprise, and why "no success in the workplace can substitute for failure in the home." If you’ve ever felt like you had to choose between being a top-tier professional and a present parent, Joe’s journey from being the "dumb kid" in class to a high-level executive will give you a fresh perspective on how to embrace the changes that matter most.

Ep. #43 London Lazerson - Life Outside 10 Million followers & Final Boss Sour in Walmart

London Lazerson has over 10 million followers and billions of views, but his greatest pivot wasn’t a viral trend—it was an ego death. After reaching the peak of TikTok fame, London realized he was playing a character that didn’t fit his life as a husband and father. In this raw and unfiltered conversation, he joins Tanner to discuss the transition from "viral experiment" to authentic entrepreneurship with Final Boss Hour and The Rubdown. London pulls back the curtain on the "messy middle" of a young marriage, discussing everything from getting married at 21 to navigating a separation and eventually rebuilding a rock-solid foundation. He offers a rare look at the "inverse envy" of the entertainment world—where world-famous celebrities crave the stability and family life that young entrepreneurs often try to trade for fame. Key Topics Discussed: * The Ego Death: Moving past a "cringe" social media persona to find genuine happiness in long-form storytelling. * Young Marriage & Resilience: A candid look at high-school sweethearts navigating fame, curiosity, and commitment. * Fatherhood as "Biological Adderall": Why having a daughter forced London to dial in his focus and maximize his time like never before. * Vulnerability in Utah: Breaking through the religious "checklist" to have honest conversations about religion and self-worth. * The Death of Follow Culture: Why view counts and authentic engagement have replaced the vanity metric of follower counts. * Building in Public: Using LinkedIn as a transparent reporting tool for business growth rather than just a "professional" resume. If you’ve ever felt the pressure of "hustle culture" or wondered what happens after the cameras turn off, London’s insights on reality and resilience will change your perspective on what it means to win.

Ep. #42: David & Fransisco - Building an $85mil Fund (Utah’s #1 Hard Money Lender)

What happens when a multi-million dollar partnership reaches its breaking point? For David and Francisco, it was the catalyst for creating Copa Capital Partners—a hard money lending firm built on the radical idea that ethics and family values should drive every financial decision. In this episode, the team behind one of Utah’s most successful lending platforms pulls back the curtain on building a powerhouse from the ground up. David and Francisco share the raw story of walking away from a $245M fund to start over at zero. They discuss the "Team David" transition, where their entire staff took pay cuts to follow them into a rinky-dink first office because they believed in the mission. From maintaining a disciplined, "boring" fund that delivers consistent 11% returns to managing the stress of deploying millions while raising large families, this is a masterclass in high-level entrepreneurship. In this episode, David and Francisco shared: * The "Team David" Transition: The leap of faith taken by an entire staff to prioritize ethics over a steady paycheck. * Protecting the Fund: How Copa maintains disciplined underwriting to ensure safety for both borrowers and investors. * The Hard Money Standard: Why Francisco became the top lender in Utah and how they maintain relationships through market cycles. * Priorities in Play: A profound look at "Adoration vs. Admiration" and how personal marriage habits impact business success. * The Hustle & The Correction: Why you have to work hard, but also know when to "swim back to the board" and realign with family. Whether you are a fix-and-flip investor or a "young hustler" trying to scale responsibly, David and Francisco offer a roadmap for building a business that you—and your family—can actually be proud of.

Ep. #41: Kelly Thayer – From Pink Slips to the Cover of Inc. Magazine & Navigating the Dot-Com Bubble

Kelly Thayer is a legendary entrepreneur, storyteller, and "connector" who transformed a 1979 video camera into a multi-million dollar marketing empire. In this episode, Kelly opens up about: • The Scraper Mentality: Being fired for "misusing a phone" to build Utah’s first wedding video business. • Duplicating Millions of video tapes. • The Public Market Crash: Navigating a $14M public company through the brutal burst of the dot-com bubble. • The Ultimate Crucible: How he prioritized his family and faith after the tragic loss of his young son at the height of his career. • Buccaneers vs. Farmers: Identifying your entrepreneurial archetype to build a business that lasts. If you want to know how to stay two moves ahead of the market while keeping your family at the center, Kelly’s 45-year perspective on risk and resilience is a must-listen.