But what happens when that timeline becomes uncertain?

In Episode 47 of the 100X Podcast, Griff Jones shares how a cancer diagnosis changed the way he and his wife, Mindy, approach family, generosity, and the years ahead. Their response became a simple family motto: “We’re going to plan for 10 and we’re going to pray for 30.”

It is a practical way to live with uncertainty while holding on to hope. And its usefulness reaches well beyond a health crisis.

When the future becomes personal

Griff was diagnosed with multiple myeloma in October 2020. He describes the experience honestly: it was emotional, and it shook him.

Before the diagnosis, he and Mindy had already been thinking carefully about what they wanted their lives to look like. They had made significant commitments to giving through their foundation and were trying to make decisions with purpose.

That preparation gave them something to draw on when life changed. It did not remove the fear or uncertainty. It helped them consider how to move forward.

With his pastor’s help, Griff began praying through the road ahead. The family motto grew out of those conversations, becoming a guide for decisions about how they would spend their time, use their resources, and care for one another.

Giving family time a place on the calendar

One of Griff’s biggest decisions was to retire. He felt the company was in a strong position, with a capable management team, and wanted to make more room for Mindy and their family.

He recognizes that retirement after a diagnosis is not an option everyone has. For him, it was an opportunity to act on a priority he had long claimed was important.

That distinction is familiar. We can say family matters while giving it whatever time remains after everything else. Griff’s diagnosis prompted him to make that time a central part of his life.

He and Mindy began taking adventures together, traveling, spending time with friends, and staying involved with their church and ministries. Experiences they might once have postponed became part of the present.

Griff also shares that healthy friends have heard his motto and wondered why they could not use it themselves. We do not have to wait for difficult news to ask whether our calendars reflect what we value.

Passing on experience through mentoring

The conversation also turns to mentoring young Christian entrepreneurs. Griff and the host discuss the value of connecting experienced leaders with younger people building businesses with a ministry purpose.

There is something encouraging about that picture. Years of experience can continue to serve others after a leader steps back from daily business responsibilities.

A conversation, an introduction, or a thoughtful question can help someone make a better decision. Mentoring offers a way to put hard-earned lessons to work in another person’s life.

Letting the next generation find its own path

For Griff, legacy is deeply connected to the people his children are becoming. He speaks warmly about their values, their relationships, and their growing interest in giving.

He and Mindy have chosen greater transparency with their children about family resources and future plans. That openness comes from confidence in their maturity, alongside an understanding that they need to discover their own paths.

One smaller detail carries its own lesson. When a giving opportunity involves public recognition, Griff has learned to put Mindy’s name first. He shares that the choice made a particular impression on his daughter.

Family members notice those things. The way we honor a spouse, respond to hardship, and make everyday decisions becomes part of what we pass on.

A question worth asking now

Griff’s story leaves listeners with a useful question: What would change if we treated our time as something precious today?

Perhaps there is a relationship that needs more attention, an experience we keep postponing, or a younger leader who could benefit from our time. Perhaps our family needs a clearer conversation about what matters most.

“Plan for 10 and pray for 30” gives Griff and Mindy a way to make thoughtful plans while trusting God with a future they cannot control. It also invites the rest of us to consider how we are living with the time already in our hands.

Listen to Episode 47 of the 100X Podcast for the full conversation with Griff Jones about faith, family, mentoring, and generosity.

The post Plan for 10, Pray for 30: Making Time for What Matters | Griff Jones appeared first on 100X Forum.

What Happens After Success? Griff Jones on Faith, Business, and a More Intentional Life

Griff Jones had helped build a thriving energy business. Then its parent company, Lehman Brothers, collapsed.

Eagle Energy itself was not bankrupt, but that distinction offered little comfort to employees and customers calling with the same question: What happens now? Griff and his team had roughly 60 to 90 days to find an answer. They found a buyer, kept their commitments to customers, and avoided laying off a single employee.

It was one of the high points of Griff’s business career. But in this conversation with Lloyd on the 100x Podcast, the story does not end with a successful deal. It leads to a harder question: After you’ve learned how to build and protect a business, what will you do with the life and influence it has given you?

The people who showed up

Griff’s earliest lessons in leadership came at home. His parents divorced when he was young. When his mother remarried, his stepfather brought steadiness, faith, and daily attention into the family. He went to Griff’s practices. He made church a priority. He was present.

That example stayed with Griff. Later, at Oklahoma State University, Griff met Mindy, his future wife, when he arrived at freshman English without anything to write with and borrowed one of her pencils. During his senior year, a speech Griff gave about mentoring students caught the attention of energy entrepreneur Chuck Watson. Chuck offered him a career opportunity in Houston and became a mentor and longtime business partner.

Griff can trace much of his life through people who took an interest in him. Their influence also helps explain why mentoring became part of the life he wanted to build.

A career shaped by disruption

Griff joined Natural Gas Clearinghouse as it grew in a changing energy market. He took on greater responsibility as the company expanded and became Dynegy. Then Enron’s bankruptcy shook the industry. With his own company under pressure, Griff faced a choice: stay in a new role or take a package and start something of his own.

He co-founded Eagle Energy in 2003. Lehman Brothers bought the company in 2007, giving it the financial backing to grow rapidly. About a year later, Lehman failed.

Eagle’s team had to act quickly while customers questioned the strength of its parent company. The business was sold to EDF within about 90 days. Griff takes particular pride in two outcomes: no customer default and no employee layoff.

There is a practical lesson in that story about keeping promises under pressure. There is also a personal one. Griff had spent years solving urgent business problems. Once the crisis passed, he had room to consider where his gifts might matter next.

Giving with intention

After leaving EDF in 2010, Griff heard businessman Terry Looper speak about moving from success toward significance. That encounter led to new conversations, reading, and a closer look at his own life.

Griff was already involved in church and giving money away. Yet he realized he had never examined his personal life with the same care he brought to business decisions. He and Mindy began asking which needs they cared about most, which relationships deserved more time, and how they could involve their children in giving.

The change showed up on his calendar. Griff began using Monday mornings for mentoring and ministry conversations while trusted leaders ran their business meetings. At work, the company made space available to ministries, introduced a chaplain service, and gave employees funds to direct to qualified charities. At home, Griff and Mindy established a foundation that brought their children into regular conversations about generosity.

None of those decisions began with a dramatic career exit. Griff looked at the skills, relationships, time, and resources already in his hands and asked how to use them more deliberately.

That is the question this episode leaves with us. Who helped you become who you are? What responsibilities are in front of you now? And what might change if you gave your time the same careful attention you give your work?

Listen to Griff Jones’s conversation on the 100x Podcast for the full story.

The post What do you do after you’ve made it? Griff Jones appeared first on 100X Forum.