Magú and I on a normal work day back in 2006.
My husband Magú and I have been married since 1997, and we have working together as Transient Books since 2001. Being self-employed, and working with family members, is fraught with advantages (tremendous freedom)...and terrifying unknowns. Here are a few tips that have helped us stay on track throughout the years.
1. Keep that sense of humor. It's all about perspective. (I'm the first to admit we're not perfect at this!) But it's what we aspire to. Deadlines, client satisfaction, sales, product design, that d***m printer, not enough hours in the day...I mean, in the end, when we're 80 and looking back, it's not what we'll remember. We'll remember the kids growing up with us here, we'll remember those special clients, we'll remember getting to take those Tuesday afternoons off just because, we'll remember that getting to make books for humans all over the planet was the best job ever.
2. Work is work, home life is home life. Try to keep them separate. Talk about work things at work. Talk about home things at home. This is actually easier to do than I would have thought. It allows our kids to experience other things besides Transient Books. It allows Magú and I to enjoy each other as husband and wife, and not only as business partners. It even allows for a surprising amount of mental clarity.
3. Don't ever hesitate to admit to your spouse: YOU'RE RIGHT! It untangles 90% of the knots.
4. Know each others' specialties. Celebrate them and allow for expansion.
5. Be flexible. Be willing to redefine the structure as needed. Go with the flow, go with the punches. Hang tight, have faith.
6. TALK IT OUT. Dive into the messy areas of your work day, and clean them up before they become the only areas. This is a fancy way of saying: Communication is key. Sometimes it's the most time consuming part of working together, but it's always worth it. If you don't get it right the first time, keep trying. Eventually, it works. I swear.