Premarital Workshop — Building a Strong Foundation Together
Getting married. Moving in together. Newly wed and wanting to start things off well.
Whatever stage you’re at, one thing is true: the conversations you have now — before the hard topics become hard problems — make an enormous difference to how things go later.
This workshop is for couples who want to be intentional about what they’re building together.
What this workshop is
This is an educational workshop, not therapy. You won’t be asked to share personal information or work through private issues in front of others. What you will get is a structured, research-based framework for having the conversations that matter most — guided by a Registered Clinical Counsellor with years of experience working with couples.
The workshop is built around the PREPARE/ENRICH relationship assessment — one of the most widely researched and used relationship tools in the world, used with over three million couples across thirty years.
Before the first session each partner completes the PREPARE/ENRICH assessment independently online. It takes about 30 minutes. The results generate a personalised report for your relationship — mapping your strengths and growth areas across the topics that research consistently shows matter most.
Then we work through those results together.
What we cover
Across the two sessions we work through the conversations most couples avoid until they have to have them:
Communication — how you each communicate, what gets in the way, and how to talk about difficult things without it damaging the relationship
Conflict — how you each handle disagreement, what your patterns are, and how to navigate conflict in a way that brings you closer rather than creating distance
Money and finances — attitudes toward spending, saving, and financial security — one of the most common sources of relationship tension and one of the least talked about before commitment
Intimacy and connection — what you each need, how you express affection, and how to maintain closeness through the inevitable stresses of life together
Roles and expectations — who does what, and whether those assumptions are actually shared — because unspoken expectations are one of the most reliable predictors of resentment
Family and values — what you’re each bringing from your families of origin, where your values align and where they differ, and how to navigate those differences consciously
Goals and shared vision — what you’re each hoping for, what you’re building toward together, and how to keep that shared vision alive
What you leave with
By the end of the two sessions you’ll have:
- A clear picture of your relationship strengths — the things you’re already doing well and can build on
- An honest look at your growth areas — the topics worth continuing to pay attention to
- Practical communication tools you can use immediately
- A shared language for navigating the hard conversations
- A stronger foundation going into the next chapter
Workshop details
Where: Zoom — from the comfort of your own home
When: Thursday February 21, 2018 and Thursday March 21, 2018, 7pm–9pm
Cost: $497 per couple
Facilitator: Jill Koehler, Registered Clinical Counsellor (RCC)
This is an educational workshop and not intended as couples therapy. While there will be guided discussion throughout both sessions, you are never required to share personal information with the group.
A note on why this matters
Most couples spend more time planning a wedding than preparing for a marriage.
That’s not a criticism — it’s just what our culture models. And it means that most couples arrive at one of the biggest commitments of their lives without ever having talked openly about money, conflict, sex, family expectations, or what they each actually need to feel secure and loved.
The couples who do best long-term aren’t the ones who never struggle. They’re the ones who have built the skills and shared understanding to navigate struggle when it comes — and who had the conversations early enough that small differences didn’t quietly become large ones.
This workshop is two evenings. The conversations it starts tend to last much longer than that.
Curious to learn more or register?
Visit communicatingwell.com/premarital-counselling-squamish
Email: jill@communicatingwell.com
Phone: 604-909-2401
