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Meredith & Craig (00:08)

Welcome back to another episode of I guess we can't really say what we normally do can we? Let's just say welcome back to the show. Today's episode is going to be a little bit different because we're throwing the challenge flag on ourselves a little bit.

We talk a lot about taking 100 % responsibility and not settling for fine, but we took a step back the last week or so and looked at the title of our podcast, The Road of Life Podcast, and we thought, it's fine. And fine is a four-letter word that we don't use around here. Nope. It's not 200%.

Look, I love the Road of Life podcast, the name. love it. It was like the first iteration for us. It has some very fond memories and it's a baby that I hold dearly.

And we had it for 120 episodes. the last three years. This is episode 121. Yeah, like three years and 120 episodes. if we're being honest, if you're driving down the road or if you're online looking for a podcast that is going to help you with your marriage.

The Road of Life podcast doesn't necessarily screen that. That's not the sign that people are going to take notice of for, this definitely will help. I'm looking for a relationship podcast. Road of Life? Yeah, that sounds like it. So I think in essence, we've made ourselves like the world's best kept secret. Yeah, right. Which is, ⁓ I guess, kind of cool in a way. It's cool to be the world's best at something.

But

a secret is not one of them when you're trying to help as many people as you possibly can. So starting right now, the Road of Life podcast is getting a name change. Drum roll! And henceforth, henceforth, what's the? Henceforth. And henceforth? Yeah. And henceforth shall be named the 200 % Marriage Podcast. Woo! Boom. So, welcome to another episode. Welcome to the first episode.

of the 200 % of Marriage podcast. Same us, same shenanigans, same deep dive into all things relationships, just with a more appropriate name.

And for those of you that have been on this journey with us since the beginning, since episode one, this isn't the end of the road of life. We're still on that journey. This is the road of life that we're all on. It's just now we're dialing in the name a little bit more. That's simply all this is. Yeah. And so we said we threw the challenge flag on ourselves. I think let's just back up for a sec.

and explain the challenge flags. It's one of my favorite concepts that we've come up with and we came up with it early days in this whole journey. for anyone who watches any NFL football, Super Bowl, Super Bowl coming up or just happened, I guess, by the time this airs, just happened. We don't know the results yet because we recorded this a couple days before.

But challenge flag, NFL fans, when the coach on the field throws that little red flag on the ground, it's a signal to the referee to call a timeout and review the call that was made on the field, because the coach disagrees with it. And so they take a timeout, they review the call that was made, and they either move on or correct their decision. So in your relationship, if you want to challenge a call that you made as a team, you want to challenge a decision you made, an action you took, a situation you created for yourselves, sidebar.

We're never challenging the other person. We're challenging a thing, an action, decision, a situation. You throw your challenge flag You throw a dish towel on the ground. You throw the hand towel, a face cloth, a tissue, anything at all to signify, I want to have a conversation about something that we've done here, something that we've created. And that's the sort of the initiation of having what might be a somewhat uncomfortable conversation.

Where did it start from? When did we first use the challenge flip concept for us? When we jumped into real estate, a company that was making us absolutely miserable and...

struggled through that for weeks without actually having a conversation about it until it just became too much unbearable. We were unbearable to each other. Grumpy and short and snippy. And it was like, all right, enough's enough. It's not us kind of behavior at all. Totally out of character. we were like, something's got to happen here. So out came the challenge for Leigh. We're like, we got to have a conversation. We got to challenge this decision that we've made.

It's terrible. hate it. Me too. It's like, ⁓ thank God. Why are we doing this then? And so both freaking miserable. Why are we here? Inflection point totally put us on a different trajectory. It's that important. Yeah. So again, doing it again here now with the podcast, another inflection point, I believe. ⁓

Think that it's it's really cool that given that we're going from the road of life podcast to the 20 % marriage podcast And we've just written the 20 % marriage book What better way?

What better way to kick off the podcast? Because one of the biggest things that we've heard since we've written the book is great feedback. But one thing that we consistently hear is you guys need to read this and make an audible version, audio version of this. I need to hear you read this. I want to hear your voices tell these stories. And so your request is our command with the first many episodes of the road of life podcast. ⁓

200 % marriage podcast that's gonna take some getting used to. It is gonna take some getting used But with the first few episodes of the 200 % marriage podcast, and by I mean most of this year, we're actually going to record the audio version of this book, chapter by chapter. Every episode will be a chapter we'll read the chapter and then we will have discussions about the different points and.

behind the scenes stuff, challenges we had when writing it. We're gonna bring some guests on to talk about different concepts. Yeah, we'll have a really good time with it over the next however long it takes. And so I guess that brings us to the other challenge flag that we threw on ourselves when it comes to the podcast is we changed formats for Year 3. As of episode 105, we started bringing guests on. And in hindsight, we might have rushed into that a little bit.

And so we're going to soften that approach a little bit, walk that back a little bit. We'll bring guests on when it's appropriate, but it's not going to go all guests. It's going to still be mostly us. Yep. So why not? What better way to kick this off than to start with talking about this book in this episode. And so in this episode, we're going to talk about the cover, some of the testes. That's what I call testimonials. ⁓

where they came from, we got them, the table of contents. Most people don't talk about table of contents. We're going to because, ⁓ well, because the table of contents is important. And we're gonna talk about why that is. The dedication, all the things leading up to the first chapter. So everything else about this book, we're gonna talk about in this episode, and then we're gonna kick off the next episode with chapter one. So without further ado, the cover. It's a funny story, this cover. ⁓

When we wrote the book, we thought the cover would come easily after. Yeah. And it did not. It didn't. It was one of the more challenging pieces of We thought it was going to be a major hang up actually, like delay the whole project. Yeah. We just didn't give the cover a lot of thought as we were writing it. We're like, that'll take care of itself after. And we had someone who was kind of doing that work for us off to the side and

We're not going to name who it was or anything like that, but it sucked. It wasn't good. did the vibe. just, not that the artwork itself was bad. It just didn't match the vibe of the book or our energy and vibe. Like just complete misalignment. The cover artists didn't get the book, didn't get us at all. It looked like a wedding invitation. Very formal. If you haven't read the book yet, you will notice something when you do.

It is the last, it's the furthest thing from formal. Yeah. It is a very informal book. And so you can't have a cover that looks like a wedding invitation. It's like, the two hundred percent marriage and they get into it and there's dick jokes. Yeah, there's dick jokes. Just sports analogy, swearing. It just didn't jive with the formal wedding invitation feel of the cover. There's a misalignment there. Someone who's looking for that kind of book opens this. They're going to be aghast.

what they see. And similar to our podcast title situation, someone who's looking for our book, what's actually inside the content of the is not going to pick it up based on the cover. No, no. So we had a misalignment on our hands. For sure. And then we were on a call with some friends of ours and we were just talking about it. And our friend Kip is like, you know, Laura's really good at that stuff. like Laura's like...

Well, just send me what you've got. No promises. I'll take a crack at it. No promises. And then she hit a home run and sent the very first iteration of her first thought of the design was almost bang. It was bang on what we're looking for. A couple little tweaks later, a couple iterations and we've got the cover. And so we're really, we're really proud of it. There's some Easter eggs in there. It's a fun cover. ⁓ It definitely.

embodies the vibe of the book. Yeah, and I love, you know, it's funny and it's actually one of the testes in the testimonials in the book is from my aunt because when she saw it she said, you know, congratulations on the book, by the way. ⁓

the cover looks like you're going into the mountains to have sex. She did say that. And you know, I was like, perfect. I love going for it. I love that. That was your first inclination and impression of the cover. And so I think we hit a home run with the cover. Yeah. Laura hit a home run. Laura Brown, life design duo. So if you need a book cover done and if you need a penis drawn, she is your gal. We will. She draws very realistic.

We will link to Laura's website below. So that's kind of the story behind the cover and it's near and dear to our heart and it's cool that someone from our community, our friends, such a big, role in this and created the cover.

so that's the cover and that's pretty cool. And so then the testimonials, the testes. It's funny because most, most books, I think, you know, they lean into the very formal, uh, testimonials. And we have some of those. We do. But again,

opposite of formal here. So we were doing things a little differently right from the very beginning. We got some people to read the book and even people and to give us their honest feedback and their honest testimonials. And we used all of them, good and bad. and weird. So we've got some from like, I really love this book. Also, you guys spell color wrong. Is that a Canadian thing?

It is a Canadian thing. you Americans spell color wrong. You will notice when you read this book that color has a U in it. And that's just the way it is because that's the way it's supposed to be. It's funny. There's some testimonials in here from our family because as much as we love them, they do not get what we do. They don't get it. They don't understand our world. They don't understand what we're up to 99 % of the time.

And so when we wrote this book, we told our nephews, nieces and nephews and Jake in particular was the first one to actually, it wasn't Jake that kind of set this off. was your mom. That's right. It was mom. So We've been, we've been doing this for a few years now and we were writing this book this year. Yeah. And you told your mom in passing or I don't know, just tell her, tell the story. Yeah. ⁓

We've been writing the book in earnest since June, right? So we were in the throes of writing the book. We will talk more about the process of writing the book in a little but we were really, like we were head down writing this book. It was consuming the vast majority of our waking hours, writing the book, editing the book, formatting the book, the cover, the launch plan, all the things. And so whenever I would chat with my mom, like whenever it was my turn to offer an update,

The only thing I had to talk about was the book, right? It's the only thing going on in my life basically at this point. And we were away for months. We finally got home in October. Canadian Thanksgiving is in October and we were celebrating it a week late so we were peeling vegetables and all the things, getting ready for Thanksgiving dinner. And you and I were having a conversation about the book. I wasn't even talking to mom about it. You and I were talking about the book. And mom pipes up with, book? What book? You're writing a book?

What's it about? Which was so funny. So funny. Because, not even though, like, forgetting that we're actually writing one, that's fine. Like, everyone's busy. But what's it about? What's the best part of that whole testimonial? I just love that she's been paying that close attention. So anyway, that was a funny testimony. We were like, you know what, let's just put that in the book. think it's funny. Because it's funny and it just shows how...

Real life. Self-deprecating and how much our family doesn't care about anything that we do. And so we just thought we'd throw that in there. Less doesn't care, more doesn't understand. And so then we ⁓ were at a basketball game, Lily's basketball game, and Jake was in the stands with us and we were telling him about the book. And ⁓ he looks at us and is like, what the hell? This is weird. Is there kissing in it?

Why do you guys kiss so much? He loves it when we kiss, it's weird. He's weird about it. is weird. He's my like creepy little wingman. Anyway, we just thought that that was funny. And so, you know, we do kiss a lot. And the reason we kiss a lot is we have a 200 % marriage. And if you want to kiss a lot, grab it. Get the book.

So there's some other ones in there from our nieces and nephews and the testimonials. We wanted to make the entire book an experience, not just the content of the book itself, but the cover has some Easter eggs in it. There's some funny stuff going on with the cover. The testimonials, the testes, if you will. There's some funny stuff going on in there. Every piece of this book is meant to be.

a little bit of an experience, literally every part, even the table of contents. Architecting an experience for the reader. From the cover to the back cover, front cover to back cover, literally the entire book, there's something everywhere. And so the table of contents, you know, most people don't spend a lot of time on the table of contents. They name the chapter, they throw it, it's just a summary of all the chapters. And the chapter titles are just very, very generic. They're very easily identifiable to what's going to be.

talked about in the chapter and we took a decidedly different approach and it was a very intentional approach and we again want to create an experience so the table of contents when you go to look at it you're gonna have no clue what is actually for a lot of it ⁓ you're not gonna exactly know what is happening in that chapter

based on the chapter title. They're curiosity hooks, for sure. They're curiosity driven and... What's your favorite one? A little bit funny. ⁓

I don't know. Squirrel's hemorrhoids and other marriage glues pretty good. Like I just think that that's like, what the hell is that going to be? You know? Or like big trust energy. You probably. We're going to talk a little bit about trust in that chapter. That one's pretty obvious. The last chapter is called the beginning. So that's like a little, what the hell? What the hell? What the hell? I like a lot of them. Eat your own damn pie. Hide the penis.

coitus power. love all these. But the table of contents are very deliberately weird. They do, once you read the chapter, they do make sense. They will probably maybe not make sense. Until you read the chapter. Beforehand. So that's the table of contents. And then we move into the dedication.

we dedicated the book to you, the reader, and to my dad.

Because I think he'd be really proud. And he'd really like it. I think he'd it was cool. I think he'd love the dick jokes. There's some artwork in it. He would love this book. I think he'd be incredibly proud. I think he is incredibly proud. And yeah, I think.

Well, that says it all. know you'd love this. Rest in peace. And to you, the reader. Welcome to the jungle. Stay for the fun and games. Welcome to the jungle. We've got fun and games. And that brings us to the forward. And the forward is pretty special to us.

It's written by our good friend Greg and, you know, he, he talked, we're going to read it here in a second, but he talks about it, how it's an incredible honor for him to write this. And it's, it's an incredible honor to have him write this. It's really special. It's meaningful. And like the cover with Laura designing it.

Having the foreword written by Greg and having his name on the cover with ours for this book. It's a it's a it's a really special moment and Because we wouldn't be here without Greg Greg is He's been such an influence in our life a true story you know when we tell the story about you know being miserable in real estate and going to an event and

getting told you should consider coaching and then having us on stage to talk about relationships. That's, that's Greg. Greg did that. Greg could see our greatness way before we could. Way before. Way before. Way before. And you know, be forever grateful for his vision. He talks about vision in the foreword, our vision. But we're grateful for his. But we're incredibly grateful for his. And this book and everything that we do, ⁓

in relationships doesn't happen without him. We've learned an incredible amount from Greg and it's ⁓ meaningful. I was going to say humbling. It's also incredibly humbling to have him write this for us. So we will read the forward and then we'll talk about it.

The Forward by Greg L. Kimball. A coach is someone that sees beyond your limits and guides you to greatness. Michael Jordan. It's an incredible honor to write The Forward for such forward-thinking people.

Entrepreneurs are endowed with a powerful, if sometimes challenging gift. Vision. As I often say, if you have true vision, you can see farther than others, and you can see before others. That means, early on, friends, family, and colleagues may think you're a little crazy, because you're speaking about something only you can see. Watching Meredith and Craig's journey has been a privilege, an honour, and a blessing, not only as entrepreneurs, but as masterful relationship coaches. They've become close personal friends, and I have immense respect

for them. They once found themselves shackled to the idea of trading time for money, yet they knew something inside of them needed to be released. They recognized that the world needed what they uniquely offer, a powerful, practical, enjoyable approach to relationship coaching that changes lives. Seeing their vision come to life through the trials and tribulations of entrepreneurship has been inspiring, but what sets them apart most is their craft. They aren't just two of the greatest human beings I've met.

They're also in the coaching industry for the right reasons. They genuinely help people. They take the time to understand. There is no guru mentality. If they don't know something, they seek answers and consult trusted experts in their orbit to make wiser, more informed decisions. That's what makes a great coach and more importantly, a great human and a lifelong learner. They're among the most curious, creative practitioners I've had the pleasure to coach.

Today I get to watch them coach others, saving marriages, transforming lives, strengthening partnerships, and empowering people into the next evolution of themselves. The honor of writing this forward means a great deal. Meredith and Craig have not only allowed me to guide them, they've helped me explore what's possible in coaching.

They're filling a gap that our industry and frankly humanity needs. They don't just talk about relationships. They provide repeatable frameworks, tools and strategies that move people from conflict to connection, from confusion to clarity, from good to extraordinary. While their work certainly elevates marriages, it extends to every human connection, business partners, families, friends, all of the important relationships in your life.

They are true relationship experts with an uncanny ability to be whatever is needed. A guiding light, a lighthouse, a flashlight, the duct tape, the scaffolding, the renovation plan, the building process, the blueprint. All of the pieces it takes to create, rebuild, and elevate relationships beyond what people thought was possible for them. They are compassionate and deeply caring.

It's been a joy to watch them grow and just as importantly to watch them help others tap into their humanity and grow together. It's my honor and privilege to be part of their story because I know that being part of their journey has helped them push their tools, practices and energy out into the world. Their principles, methods and dedication to who they are and to this thing we call life.

will make them catalysts in countless other people's helping humanity show up at its best. I know you will enjoy this book. I love Craig and Meredith with all my heart, and I know this is just the beginning for them. Even though I started a company called The Final Percent, this is only their first percent. I can't wait to see where this journey takes them and how many people on this planet they'll help through their remarkable relationship coaching. Craig L. Kimball, speaker, coach, perseverance expert, The Final Percent.

That's pretty cool. And he's 200 % right. Because what he's saying in this is that we're fucking good at what we do. And he is correct. And he is correct that we're going to have an enjoyable journey with this book and with this whole relationship thing that we're doing here. So I also love that he spells honor wrong. H-O-N-O-R. ⁓

There's a U in honor, just like there is in color. So the only place that you'll see the no U in honor is in the forward, from here on out. We had U's two words. Given that he's American, I left it. Going forward, you'll see the U.

So that's it for the first episode of the 200 % Marriage Podcast. we're excited for the rest of this journey to read the book and get our voices in your ear holes. I'm excited because we're going to have some chit chat.

as we go through the book. We'll read the chapters and then we'll chit chat around some cool behind the scenes stuff. You can only put so much in a book before it becomes like what's too much? Like you have to cut stuff and so you'll get a little behind the scenes on the cutting room floor of kind of you know maybe a little bit more detail on some of the stories that are in here. You'll learn more about us. Yeah it'll be a wild ride. It'll be a vulnerable situation but that's what we're in for. That's how we grow.

So thank you for being a part of the first episode of the 200 % marriage podcast, but it's the 121st episode of I guess our podcast journey. We appreciate you and we will see you next week for chapter one. What the fuck are we doing here?

Chapter one, what the fuck are we doing here? See you next week.

So what's one action you're gonna take this week to put something you learned in this episode into practice. Because we love a good chit chat as much as the next person does. But without action, stay where you are.

If you want to turn your marriage into the engine that drives your business forward instead of the brakes keeping it stuck, book a free marriage and business strategy session with us at 200percentmarriage.com/strategycall. We'll see you next week.