<p>Ellie and Maggie welcome Mary Kay Shields, owner of Triple Crown Dentistry in Louisville, to discuss the often-unspoken reality of owning a business with a spouse and navigating divorce alongside a partnership split. Mary shares her path from starting her dental practice in 2012 to expanding into a larger, purchased 8,000-square-foot building in 2019, and how differing leadership styles created team division and conflict despite years of intensive counseling. After deciding the marriage and business partnership couldn’t continue, she describes employee turnover, the relief of resolved conflict, and rebuilding culture and leadership through executive groups like Vistage. Mary also recounts a major mistake made during a tax-related entity change when she unintentionally documented 50/50 ownership, complicating the divorce and buyout, and emphasizes leaning on experts—attorneys, accountants, and advisors—and following through on their guidance.</p><p><br></p><p>00:00 Podcast Catch Up</p><p>01:10 Meet Mary Shields</p><p>03:45 Mary’s Dental Journey</p><p>06:25 Building The Practice</p><p>09:21 Marriage And Leadership Rift</p><p>14:10 Decision To Separate</p><p>16:45 Rebuilding With Vistage</p><p>22:46 The 50 Percent Mistake</p><p>28:42 New Culture And Confidence</p><p>32:28 Advice For Business Divorce</p><p>35:33 Behind the Scenes Shoutouts</p><p>36:15 Why This Topic Matters</p><p>38:16 Meeting Through Vistage</p><p>38:59 Marys Dental Journey</p><p>41:47 Building the Practice Together</p><p>44:40 When Partnership Breaks Down</p><p>49:36 Divorce Decision and Team Fallout</p><p>53:39 Rebuilding Leadership and Culture</p><p>58:43 The 50 Percent Ownership Mistake</p><p>01:04:35 Confidence Returns and New Culture</p><p>01:08:43 Advice for Others Mid Divorce</p><p>01:10:21 Final Thanks and Wrap Up</p>