We really enjoyed our time interviewing kickass couple, Jillian Flodstrom and Joe Vego. We’re going to recap our Kickass Couples podcast interview with them in this blog post. Before we break it down, we’d like to note that it really hit us hard when we were reviewing this episode because it was actually the last interview that we did in Maynard, our Airstream podcast studio, before it accidentally burned to the ground. That was the last time we got to enjoy interviewing a great couple in our studio. It’s a little bit heartbreaking and has certainly struck some emotional chords with us.
We are working through the insurance process. We’ll be getting another studio. Stay tuned for that exciting announcement as it comes out, but we’re going to keep bringing you great articles and wonderful interviews with pearls of wisdom that you can use to strengthen your number one relationship.
The couple we’re talking about today is different than a lot of the couples we’ve interviewed. They started later in life, and bring a real sense of maturity to their relationship. They weren’t messing around when they got married. They both knew what they wanted. They both had successful businesses and were ready for something meaningful.
They believe that goal setting both within the marriage and individually, has been a big part of their relationship. It keeps them grounded. They’ve gone into this relationship with intentional goal setting and they try to meet those goals on a daily basis.
A lot of us have individual goals, personal goals, and business goals. Jillian talked about having an annual meeting with Joe, like a shareholders meeting. They do it for their businesses to hold each other accountable, and they do it for their marriage too. They sit down and get clear on what are the goals for their relationship and their businesses and they assess how they’re doing.
We love their intentionality because we can all talk about what we’d like our relationship to be like, but unless we’re taking the time to take specific action and work on it, it never happens. Jillian and Joe are doing it. They’re walking their talk and they’re being intentional in setting goals, not just for business and personal, but for the relationship as well. They’re continually trimming their sails as well. While they’re planning and setting goals, they realize that things change over time and that they may need to abandon one thing and move on to another. They adjust as time goes by, and have learned to be nimble and adapt to changes as they may arise.
One of the traditions that they’ve established in their relationship is always having at least one meal together a day and they said typically it’s dinner. Jillian said there was a time when she had a huge meeting in the morning, and Joe made a really nice brunch/breakfast. When she got out of the meeting, they sat down, connected, and talked. They make sure they have those touch points.
What kind of traditions do you, our readers, have set up based on communication? We love to walk together because there’s no technology, we’re in nature, and it gives us a great opportunity to connect without other influences. Another one of our traditions is when we’re in Maine for the summer. We have a front porch with rockers and we go out in the morning with our cups of coffee and share our inspiration. We make sure that we’re connecting and are in sync with each other.
We highly suggest setting up a tradition around communication and really tethering with your partner on a regular and intentional basis. Think about what tradition you could start with your partner that will help you make sure that life-giving communication is occurring for you.
Until next time. Remember, happily ever after doesn’t just happen. It’s on purpose.
