Married to the Office: How husband-and-wife advisors keep their home and work lives harmonious.

Some advisors may shudder at the thought of working with their spouses, but Pam and Joe Malara combined their married and professional lives to build a successful joint practice in rural Louisiana.

Advisors for third-party marketer IPI at the Bank of St. Francisville in St. Francisville, La., and Peoples Bank in New Roads, La., the couple manages $65 million in assets and together produced $800,000 last year. They have been married for 24 years.

The couple met in Washington, D.C., Pam's hometown, at a local nightspot. Joe claims Pam asked him to dance. "That's not true! I'm not that kind of girl!" Pam says, recoiling in mock horror. This is a typical interaction: This couple kids around together. A lot.

That's important to do if you're going to work together, they say. Any cracks in a relationship can quickly show when a married couple occupies the same business. "It works for us because we have a good division of responsibility, efficiency and good, old-fashioned sense," Joe says.

The couple had reservations about spending all their time together, but they stick to separate agendas and have their own offices. Their main problem is switching off. Pam says: "We're both passionate about …