Sometimes when you're living your life, day-in and day-out, you don't realize just how special it is. Our new friend Keri Roberts, of TheBrandingConnection.com, also a host of the Inside VOICE Podcast, asked my wife Kate Hickey (COO of Data Driven Design) and I to join her on her podcast Extraordinary Things, and through this interview, I realized that what Kate and I actually do while living our lives day-in and day-out, seems super simple, but results in extraordinary things - actually, an extraordinary, amazing life for our family.

Keri and I met at Project Voice 2020 in Chattanooga, TN, before and during which I was a guest a couple of times on the Inside VOICE podcast.

But when she reached out about talking to Kate and I, it gave us the opportunity to reflect not just on what it's been like working with each other, but getting down to the essence of why we have such an amazing marriage and relationship.

Kate and I have always set specific goals, and we've communicated about what role each of us is going to play in achieving those goals.

This includes everything from what we want to have for dinner, to chores around the house, to vacations we want to take, to our kids' educational experiences to what we want to do when we "retire."

This conversation with Keri was a special gift, as it gave Kate and I both time to reflect on our lives with each other. Why we initially connected so strongly, why we still share such deep connections, and what strategies and tactics we've developed along the way to truly build the life we both want.

It's always an ongoing process, mainly filled with laughter, as is this interview.

In-between when this interview took place and when I wrote and published this piece, Kate and I celebrated our 15th wedding anniversary. We are fortunate to have had an opportunity to watch videos submitted by friends and family who have been a huge positive part of our lives on that day. Between those videos and this interview, I've learned to never underestimate the power of reflection.

And in terms of Data Driven Design, a successful remote agency that Kate and I have built together, it is a result of our strong marriage, and our ability to communicate, align and execute to achieve our goals together.

There is no special sauce. All you need is love (and dedication, and communication).

Thanks to Keri for giving us the opportunity to do this. If you watch, please enjoy.

Paul Hickey, Founder / CEO / Lead Strategist at Data Driven Design, LLC and founder of The Voice Event, and The Voice Designer, has created and grown businesses via digital strategy and internet marketing for more than 15 years. His sweet spot is using analytics to design and build websites and grow the audience and revenue of businesses via SEO/Blogging, Google Adwords, Bing Ads, Facebook and Instagram Ads, Social Media Content Marketing, Email Marketing and most recently, Voice App Design and Development – Alexa Skills and Google Actions. The part that he’s most passionate about is quantifying next marketing actions based on real data.