Family Matters | The Daniels

How did you meet?

Brent: It was a blind date through a mutual friend.

Maully: Well, I had pretty much sworn off dating at that point. We had a mutual friend who insisted we meet. I reluctantly said yes, but explained he needed to be a gentleman and call me on the telephone to ask me for a proper date, otherwise I wasn’t interested.

Brent: I did call to ask her out.

Maully: I arrived thinking, “Just 30 mins in and out. I’m NOT going to waste 3 hours of my life on this date.” So, when I walk up to the restaurant, I see him at a dining table and I’m thinking, “oh dear, I did not plan on committing myself to hours of conversation.”

Brent: We talked for several hours.

Maully: Surprisingly, I didn’t have to run to the bathroom and make the emergency call to a friend to save me from the date. I was pleasantly surprised at what a great guy he was!

How long have you been together?

Maully: Almost 10 years! We just fit well together. A few months after we started dating, Brent was diagnosed with cancer. That resulted in our relationship progressing faster than normal. At that moment, I knew I was all in. I just knew right away that Brent was somebody I wanted in my life for as long as possible.

Brent: That solidified it for me too, just knowing she cared and was there for me eliminated those typical reservations about a new relationship. I knew she was the one for me because I never dated anyone with a similar work ethic and beautiful mind, on top of everything else I knew about her.

How long have you been working alongside each other at American?

Brent: I’ve been with American for 11 years.

Maully: It’s been six and a half years now. We had just started dating and Brent was managing a client’s fulfillment project out of his house. He was leaving for an ASB Sales Conference and mentioned that he didn’t know how to handle the project while he was gone. I said, “well, if you can teach me what to do, I can help manage the project while you’re gone.” Upon his return I had a million questions about why he was doing things a certain way and ideas for how the process could be improved. None of this was my business, of course, but I was already thinking like a wife and business partner. Eventually, I left my career and joined Brent at ASB full time. It’s been really fun and I love ASB.

What is a fun fact about the two of you?

Maully: We love renting “tiny houses” on vacation and one of our visions in the future is to retire in one.

Brent: We love traveling. When we were first dating, I casually mentioned going to Mexico, and within an hour, Maully had booked a trip. That’s just how she is, if there’s an adventure to be had, she’ll make it happen. We’ve had some fun trips – one of my favorites was backpacking through Italy together.

What’s the hardest part about working with your spouse?

Maully: Lots of togetherness. You’re together personally and professionally a lot.

What’s the best part about working with your spouse?

Brent: Maully is the most incredibly woman in my life and everything we do together somewhere seems better, just because we’re together. It’s complete happiness. It can be tough being business partners and spouses, but these have been the best years of my life and career.

Maully: The best part is sharing the same goals and values. We love celebrating successes together.

Why do you recommend working with family?

Brent: There are lot of incredible things about working with your family. When you’re moving in the same direction with the same passion, the synergy, productivity, and success is amplified. Family are the people you can count on, and I know Maully always has my back. That’s one of the things we love most about American.

Maully: We have specific, shared business and financial goals. Getting to plan and grow together reminds you of each other’s strengths. And it makes your success that much sweeter than anything you could do by yourself.

To learn more about American Solutions for Business, visit http://www.americanbus.com.