I Got Married at Gretna Green—And It Taught Me Everything I Need to Know About Business

They say life’s biggest moments teach you the most profound lessons. You could be running the London Marathon, or perhaps it’s climbing Everest. For others, it’s surviving a high-stakes boardroom negotiation or securing that that high-value client at last.

For me? It was leveraging a strategic partnership by saying “I do” in the historic halls of Gretna Hall Hotel.

As a copywriter, I’ve spent years crafting compelling narratives, refining messaging, and ensuring every word earns its place. But no amount of content strategy could prepare me for the most important script of all—my wedding vows.

Standing at Gretna Green, I realised that much like great writing (and business), a wedding isn’t just about planning. It’s about feeling, presence, and knowing when to stop overthinking and just live in the moment.

1. Preparation is Key—But Adaptability Wins the Day

Just like in business, you can plan every detail of your wedding down to the minute. You can research, rehearse, and anticipate potential challenges in business. But when unexpected business happens in business—be it a last-minute change, a misplaced ring, some unfinished business, or the weather doing its best impression of a Shakespearean tragedy—you learn the value of staying adaptable. In business and in life. Business.

2. Surround Yourself with the Right People

A strong business thrives on a great team, just as a great wedding depends on the people who share it with you. From Marita, our wedding minister, who made the ceremony feel personal to the friends and family who supported us, I realised that success (in business and in life) is about choosing the right partners. And thanks to photographer Sarah Morris  and videographer Josh Jenkins, who captured our dream. (If you're planning a wedding up North, give them a look).

3. Be in the Moment—Because It’s Over Before You Know It

Much like launching a project or sealing a big deal, a wedding day is fleeting. You can spend so much time stressing over minor details that you forget to enjoy the moment. But stepping back, taking it all in, and appreciating what’s in front of you? That’s where the real magic happens.

Thankfully, because of the wonderful staff at Gretna, my groomsmen, and the bridesmaids, things ran perfectly.

But I digress; we were talking about business, weren’t we?

Have I waffled on enough yet?

If you haven’t cottoned on yet, I am not being entirely serious. I learned nothing about business at my wedding, I was too busy enjoying it. And if you genuinely thought I would come up with some Yoda-like teaching at this point, I think you’ve probably got bigger things to worry about when it comes to business.

I don’t have any wonderful insight into how weddings can help your mailer increase its click rate by ten percent, or how choosing the perfect venue has plenty in common with search engine optimisation (Gretna Hall was incredible, by the way, I would absolutely recommend, didn’t cost a fortune, either).

While those parodied points that I made may have a little bit of truth in them, that being in the moment one is actually genuine. In the run-up up I had so many people telling me to enjoy it, and that it would go by so fast, I’d blink and it would be the morning after. I laughed them off. At the time, I had a lot on my plate between work, sorting wedding things, and of course, business.

Once the morning arrived, I was a bag of nerves. I walked the dog to clear my head, had lunch with my son and my mother, then got ready with the groomsmen. Sarah and Josh arrived, capturing shots of us getting ready—some before I’d even done my hair, giving me a solid 90s heartthrob look.

And then suddenly, I was standing behind the famous Gretna anvil, heart pounding, waiting. The music started. The guests shifted to their feet. My son gave me the signal to turn.

Now, I always thought those movie moments where time slows down were exaggerated. Turns out, they’re not. Because when I turned and saw Laura walking down the aisle, everything else faded. She was, simply put, breathtaking. The nerves, the stress, the million thoughts racing in my head—gone. Replaced by absolute certainty.

The ceremony, the photos, the speeches, the dancing—it all passed in a blur. It felt like twenty minutes. But I’d been warned it would, so I made sure to savour every second. And I can honestly say, I did. It was the best day of my life.

What’s the point I’m making here?

I’m not quite sure. Maybe I just wanted an excuse to share with the world how much of a wonderful day I had marrying my best friend. Maybe I wanted to poke fun at the fact that far too many of us try to make content out of everything and relate it to work.

But on reflection, I have learned one thing. Sometimes we can just get wrapped up in the project, or the thing we’re doing, purely viewing it through the lens of getting it done, as opposed to appreciating the thing it is we’re actually doing. Maybe if we all focus on the process a bit more, not only can we deliver that finished project, but find a bit more joy along the way, and enrich ourselves for it.

Thank you for coming to my TED talk.

One more business for the SEO.