Lessons in Conscious Blending

In today´s episode of the ‘Nuclear Families Evangelist’ (A podcast that debunks the mythologies and biology by exploring the dynamics and relationships in blended families), host Traci Dority-Shanklin (Managing Partner at Sisu Partners) talks with guest Marni Rosenthal-Chaikin, An Entrepreneur in Health and Wellness industry (Pure Barre Studio Owner). Marni shares her professional journey as well as her thoughts about blending families with her fiancé.

Three Key Points

1.     Marni mentions that she is so grateful that she didn't have her children at that particular juncture when her Pure Barre Studio brand was initiated. She also thinks that more than anything it was about being able to multitask at any given moment as there are multiple things going right and wrong and being able to navigate through both the exhilarating aspect and the chaos of it all and keeping your cool was something she learned along the way. She realized that her entrepreneurial family background helped her pull the venture.

2.     Marni started dancing very early on and eventually started to train to become a professional dancer in high school. She danced competitively in middle school and then wanted to up her game and joined a semi-professional institution. She was fortunate enough to go into some very wonderful summer programs where she could undergrad with a scholarship to NYU to the School of the Arts. She ended up doing two semesters there before she had a little accident so it became difficult to carry on with the training, and later she ended up transferring to another school. She continued to dance there, but not in the same way that she had planned. 

3.     Marni and her fiancé had both been through similar situations, and they found that not only did they fall in love, but there were all of these other commonalities. They had been raised with similar values and viewpoints, and both had a very strong work ethic. But they didn't even talk about moving in together or doing anything to blend their families for at least two years. Because Marni thinks they wanted to make sure that it was the right thing for everybody. But as things unfold, sometimes you recognize things about somebody that you don't necessarily like or you don't necessarily want to bring around your children and she thinks they both kept waiting for the other shoe to drop but it never did. However, they did end up getting engaged and moved in together this past November.

Contact:
Traci Dority-Shanklin: LinkedIn Twitter Facebook
traci@sisupartnersllc.com
website: www.nuclear-families.com

Chapters

• 1:50 Marni says that she opened her first health studio in California, LA in 2009. Then she started two more in the San Fernando Valley hills, and another one in Santa Monica, California.
• 4:50 Marni believed in the technique, she believed in the product, and believed in herself as she comes from a long line of entrepreneurs.
• 6:00 The first year as the Pure Barre Studio Owner was a struggle for Marni as the brand took off. Fortunately, at that point, she didn’t have children so she could focus on her business.
• 8:15 Traci thinks it's an important lesson for parents to know whether it's a stepchild or a child of their own, that they are being watched.
• 10:00 Traci asks if Marni was tapped by the then private equity firm behind her Pure Barre Studio to join a franchisee board so that she could help them develop corporate studios.
• 16:30 Marni talks about her experience of going from single-divorced mom to thinking about blending a family with her fiancé. She also says that she handled all that pretty well and now her kids feel like thrived.
• 18:35 Marni had written down a few things that she was truly looking for in a partner and one of those things was how do they parent?
• 24:25 Traci states that the idea that Marni and her fiancé had a conversation and were intentional about giving their kids a voice is highly recommended.