How Operators can Balance Ambition with a Sustainable Life - The Intentional Owner #13
Description
In this episode of The Intentional Owner, co-hosts Kaustubh Deo and Sam Rosati unpack what it looks like to build a fulfilling life around small business ownership without sacrificing long-term goals. Framed around personal goal setting, competing priorities, and everyday tradeoffs, the episode offers a candid look at how both hosts are trying to design lives that support sustainability—not just scale.
They share stories of recent chaos, from moving mishaps and work-life boundaries to surprise break-ins and activity trackers, all while reflecting on how much structure is enough to keep life moving forward without being overly rigid.
They also discuss:
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The tension between goal-setting and adaptability in both life and business
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How to balance ambition with long-term personal sustainability
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Frameworks like EOS and the Vision Traction Organizer for business planning
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The opportunity cost of hobbies and how personal priorities evolve with family
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Leveraging tools like KPI dashboards and Google Sheets for operational clarity
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The importance of community, fitness, and calendaring for intentional living
This episode is a thoughtful, unfiltered conversation for anyone navigating the overlap between business ownership, relationships, and building a meaningful life—one decision at a time.
Kaustubh on Substack - https://bigdealsmallbusiness.substack.com/p/read-me-first
Sam on X - https://x.com/Sam_Rosati
Topics:
(00:00:00 ) - Intro
(00:01:08 ) - Catching up
(00:14:39 ) - Setting meaningful goals
(00:20:34 ) - BHAGs
(00:22:47 ) - M&A Approaches
(00:26:53 ) - Goal setting at Blooma and at home
(00:33:48 ) - Maintaing friendships
(00:45:35 ) - Living with a long-distance SO
(00:48:50 ) - Priority tradeoffs