When unmarried executive men read my blog posts, they sometimes email me and ask, “how can I find a wingspouse?” What a difficult question to answer. I could give a list of traits, but different traits work with different couples. I could provide a list of places to find educated career-driven women, but not all women of this type want to put the career on hold for a spouse’s career. I decided to ask my husband how he would suggest a man find a wife who is wingspouse material. His answer surprised me. “Marry someone you would hire as a leader,” he replied. (more…)
Posts Tagged ‘marriage and career’
Know When to Become Invisible
April 7th, 2010 by Kathi the wingspouse
I grew up watching I Dream of Jeanie and Bewitched. Back then, women were generally portrayed as submissive housewives who had dinner on the table when the spouse came home. Not these two characters. (more…)
Eye of the Tiger
February 19th, 2010 by Kathi the wingspouse
Once again, another high profile man stands in front of cameras to apologize for his infidelity. As the country listens to Tiger Woods admit he once “thought that normal rules didn’t apply to me,” how many others still subscribe to this flawed philosophy? Probably many. It seems to be one of the potential dangers of success. What is most telling, though, is that as Tiger assumed all responsibility for his actions, media quietly speculated about his wife. Why isn’t she in the audience? Will she forgive him? Would her appearance have helped or hurt his perception? Even after separation, the actions of his “other half” have the power to sway peoples’ impressions and alter media’s reporting. (more…)
Secrets to Being a Happy Couple
December 1st, 2009 by Kathi the wingspouse
Others can tell when a spouse is truly happy. There’s a certain look of contentment that can’t be faked, and a flirtatious smile that exchanges between the executive and the spouse, even in public. It’s easy to gravitate to a spouse who seems to have life figured out. The desire to have some of it rub off is overwhelming. So what is the secret? I conducted my own unofficial survey, reading other executive spouse blogs and talking with people directly. Here are the secrets I found to be most common… in order of importance. (more…)
Interview With Katherine Wingate MD
November 6th, 2009 by Kathi the wingspouse
I recently interviewed a unique and impressive woman who started out her marriage as a military wife, and later followed her dreams to become a physician.
Katherine and Kent Wingate
Dr. Katherine Wingate is a pediatrician, practicing in Ohio. She received her M.D. degree from Wright State University and did her pediatric residency at Dayton Children’s Medical Center. Katherine and her husband, Kent, have two sons and live in Beavercreek. I would tell you more about her husband, but that would spoil the interview! I can say that Katherine and Kent started out with a traditional marriage that turned into anything BUT…
When Katherine became a physician, Kent humbly traded roles and became her wingspouse. In this recorded interview, Katherine shares how she went from being a military wife to becoming a physician. We discuss how each phase in their marriage was another step toward a wonderful relationship with mutual career support. I also ask a few probing questions about how her professional husband handled taking on the role of wingspouse!
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Katherine talks about her early days as a military wife, and shares how after 13 years of marriage she decided to become a doctor.
(approx 8 minutes)
Wingate Interview Part 1
Katherine discusses how she and her husband adjusted to her new career, and what hurdles her husband overcame while taking on the role of wingspouse.
(approx 8 minutes)
Wingate Interview Part 2
Katherine reveals another twist in their marriage and careers… Can you say Dr. Wingspouse?
(approx 7 minutes)
Wingate Interview Part 3
