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Media Coverage

Two by Two: Lessons for Couples Living and Working Together

The Toronto Sun (August 18, 1996)
by Sandy Naiman

Couples sharing careers and working together, their emotional lives and economic fates intertwined, put marriage to the acid test. Could you do it?

"With 47% of Canadian small businesses owned and operated by couples and with the number of small businesses doubling every three years, this is a trend on the rise and a lot of people are going to be doing it," says Vancouver-based business management consultant Annette O'Shea-Roche.

We asked five successful fully-integrated couples what lessons they've learned about marriage and the special art of living together and working together.

Since the rules for good business partnerships and good marriages are the same, says O'Shea-Roche, whose husband has been her business partner for eight years, they may also resonate for more traditional couples.

"A business partnership is fatally flawed without mutual respect and mutual responsibility," she says. "In a successful marriage, a woman's role is not more or less important than a man's. And in parenting, one parent can't accept all responsibility if a child is having problems. Nor can parents effectively parent without respecting each other's decisions about how their children are raised."

Farah and Martin Perelmuter, both 26, seem to be stretching togetherness to its limits and loving it. Shortly before they married last June, she was an advertising account executive and he was a corporate lawyer on the rise, working such long hours they had trouble finding time to spend together.

So, they left their careers to launch Speakers' Spotlight, an exclusive agency to promote public speakers, a decision that followed a year of careful research, planning and saving.

"It was Farah's idea," says Martin, sitting at their dining room table, 12 feet from the tiny office they share.

"To hire a lawyer would be too expensive, so I married one," she quips. "Now we spend 24 hours a day together, but we bring different things to our relationship."

So far they've learned "you can't put your work away entirely if you're married to your business partner," says Martin. "So if you want a 9-5 job, this isn't the way to get it."

Farah adds, "We're not making the money we made before, but we're so much happier. That's what's important to us."


The Lawyer’s Weekly - June 17, 2009
Lawyer of the Week

The Toronto Star - March 16, 2009
Presidents don't always subscribe to free speech

Vancouver Sun  - March 2, 2009
Football flash Rudy still drawing them in

Financial Post  - February 21, 2009
Dubya's coming to Cowtown

MeetingsCanada.com - December 11, 2008
Speakers’ Spotlight CEO Named a Most Powerful Women in 2008

Press Release - November 27 2008
CEO of Speakers’ Spotlight One of Canada’s Most Powerful Women in 2008

MeetingsCanada.com - November 27, 2008
Speakers' Spotlight Wins Workplace Award

Press Release - November 2008
Speakers' Spotlight: More Than Just Talk 

MSN Small Business - October 2008
Profile: Speakers' Spotlight

Millionairemom.com - October 2008
Millionaire Moms Audio Interview with Farah Perelmuter

Canadian Event Perspective - August 2, 2008
Defied Odds to Stay True to Their Dream...

Women's Post - July 11, 2008
Woman of the day

Bizbash.com - June 12, 2008
M.C.s Gone Wild - How to keep talent from going off-book and out-of-bounds
by Mimi O'Connor

Workopolis.com - April 28, 2008
4 Ways to Improve Your Presentation Skills
By Alan Kearns

CareerJoy.com - April 28, 2008
3 keys to a great speech Podcast

Montreal Gazette - April 07, 2008
Bill Clinton raking it in from Canadian public appearances
By Elizabeth Thompson

Alberta Venture - March, 2008
The Star Treatment
By Shannon Sutherland

AOL Canada - February 13, 2008
Couple Q&A: Romance is....Notes on the Windshield, Bum Squeezes and Kids
By Sarah Treleaven

National Post - December, 2007
Gabbing with gracious gurus
By Shinan Govani,

Woman's Post - December, 2007
Farah Perelmuter: change to happiness
By Angela Trimmer

Midtown Town Crier - November, 2007
Midtown couple dreams their way to success
By Kelly Gadzala

National Post - September 29, 2007
Business owner by age nine, CEO proves an early start helps
By Libby Znaimer

Emprendedores
Speakers Spotlight, por hablar que no quede

Contemporary Business Communication
Business Presentations
By Scot Ober & Brad Quiring

Speaking Of Impact - Summer, 2007
Racing for ROI
By Michelle Ray, CSP

Progressive Choices - Winter/Spring, 2007
Making A Difference
By Cathy Watters
Progressive Choices

National Post - January 15, 2007
Confessions of Dynamic Duos
Running a business with your spouse

By Deena Waisberg

globeandmail.com  - May 30, 2006
Married to the Job
By Sasha Nagy

Esteem Magazine - Spring 2006
Balancing Success
By Kevin Craig

The Globe and Mail - Sept. 29, 2004
Speakers' circuit not just talk
By Wallace Immen

WOMEN CAN DO ANYTHING (July 2004)
Let’s Talk Business Interview
with Farah Perelmuter

INNOVATIVE PROGRESS (May 2004)
BUILD BUZZ: 8 Keys to Entrepreneurial Success
by Martin Perelmuter, LL B.

SPEAKING OF IMPACT (Spring 2004)
A Tale of Two Countries
by Martin Perelmuter, LL B.

In Conference
Supplement in The Globe and Mail - Spring 2004
Speaking Out Conferences Energized by Successful Speakers

PROFITguide.com (October/November 2003)
How to fire your customers - Cutting off paying customers sounds counterproductive, but it can actually help you grow

THE MISSISSAUGA NEWS (Nov 13, 2002)
At Bridges to Business symposium - Don't quit entrepreneurs told

MPI Newsbytes (Volume 9, Issue 27 02 July 2002)
Canadian Speakers Circuit Flying High
by Funmi Okunbolade

Profit Magazine (June, 2002)
Heroes for Hard Times:Canada's Fastest-Growing Companies point the way to survival and success

Profit Magazine (June, 2002)
Trends: How to Introduce a Speaker

The Globe and Mail: In Conference Magazine (Spring, 2002)
Talking About Success: The Speaking Industry

The National Post (Monday March 19, 2001)
Site helps track down celebrity speakers
by Marjo Johne

Canadian Jewish News (August 3rd, 2000)
Young Couple's Speakers' Agency Thrives
by Sheldon Kirshner

The Calgary Herald (April 22, 2000)
Mount Everest Climb Shared on Internet
by Michelle Simick

The Generator (November, 1999)
Focus on Success
by Amy Harder

Royal Bank - Today's Entrepreneur (First Aired: March 29, 1999)
Partners in business and life

Home Business Report (Summer, 1999)
Speakers, Service and Spousal Partners:
Couple brings celebrities to Canadian events

by E.T. (Mitch) Lenko

Globe and Mail (Monday, January 11, 1999)
Couple Builds Agency on Soapbox,
by Jeff Brooke

The National Post (Monday, December 21, 1998)
When Your Partner is Your Business,
by Laura Fowlie

The Western Alumni Magazine (September, 1998)
"Well Spoken",
by Jeff Brooke

The Toronto Star (May 25, 1998)

Thinking Big - Agency puts speakers in spotlight
by Michael Schultz

Association - Canada's Association Management Magazine
(December/January, 1997/1998)

Best Speaker Bets: 1998 Forecast

The Meeting Professional (December, 1997)
"Beyond Boundaries: Speaking Across Cultural Boundaries",
by Martin Perelmuter

The Financial Post Magazine (January, 1997)

"Power Talks",
by John Greenwood

The Toronto Sun (August 18, 1996)

"Two by Two: Lessons for Couples Living and Working Together",
by Sandy Naiman

Association Magazine (June/July, 1996)

"Helpful Hints on Booking a Speaker",
by Farah Perelmuter

The Toronto Star (November 27, 1995)
"'Canadian' the New Word in Public Speaking",
by Oscar Rojo

 

 

 

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