Married Couple Avoid Turning Office Email Issues Into Marital Therapy Sessions

Photo by Hoi An and Da Nang Photographer on Unsplash

KEY POINTS

•Sarah and Paul Ratliff have worked together in corporate biotech and now run an eco-organic farm business in Puerto Rico.
•They intentionally kept their marriage private at the biotech company to avoid workplace favoritism and distractions.
•Today, they balance diverse roles on their farm while consulting clients, prioritizing peace and clear boundaries.

Sarah and Paul Ratliff have survived 25 years of marriage and 15 years of working together without accidentally turning biotech IT dilemmas or health economics spreadsheets into couple’s therapy topics. Paul started in 2000-ish managing Southern California biotech's email and digital clutter, lurking invisibly in IT’s shadows, while Sarah joined two years later, practically running an experimental health economics team that many doubted. Their cunning plan? Keep their very suspiciously shared rare last name off the corporate PDA billboards to avoid colleagues wheedling calendar favors or priority tickets. They escaped the biotech circus in 2008 to run Mayani Farms on a Puerto Rican farm, where arguing is apparently traded for tropical strolls and hakuna matata, even while consulting about eco-organic farming with a clear division: Sarah handles marketing, Paul does the farming wizardry. Together, they've learned all marriages and businesses crack under pressure when you mix egos, emails, and eco-consulting — requiring strategy, not just love. Spoiler: less PDA, more PPE (plant protection equipment).